THE UNBREAKABLEGLASS CEILINGDespite their immense popularity among the masses,actresses rarely get a chance tocall the shots while making afilm. We find out moreabout the status quo.

Hyderabad’s first compact afternoon newspaper

`2TUESDAY, MAY 15, 2012 HYDERABAD WWW.POSTNOON.COM WEATHER: CLEAR WITH CLOUDY SPELLS; 36°C 32 PAGES

A JOB TO DOInternships are usually under-taken in order to get credits orexperience in a particularcourse. What do studentsexpect out of an intern-ship? We find out.

NANI, AMALA IN BILINGUAL FILMThe latest buzz is that Nanihas signed to play one ofthe lead roles in a bilingualfilm to be directed bySamutharakani. Amala Paulis going to team up withNani and Jayam Raviin this film.

You hit the gym with all the vigour and determination possible, hoping to be severalkilos lighter in a couple of months. But four months down the line and severalexhausting workouts later you’re not as light as you’d expected to be. Disappointed?Discouraged? Don’t be. While exercise is important to stay fit and stave off extrakilos, it is also important to supplement this regime with a healthy diet.

EAT SMART TO LOSE WEIGHT

The self-styled‘Jesus Christ’,Maodud AhmedKhan, was arrest-ed on Monday byRajendra Nagarpolice for creatingnuisance in public.He is also chargedwith makingremarks offensiveto other faiths.

P15

P8

P21

LATESTADDITIONTOLOCKUP:‘JESUS’

REPORT ON PG 3

P18

Big Cinemas, Ameerpet: 30581470; Cinemax, Banjara Hills: 44565555; Cine Planet , Kompally: 61606060; INOX, Banjara Hills: 44767777;Prasads, Tank Bund Rd: 23448888; PVR, Punjagutta: 8800900009; Talkie Town, Miyapur: 40214175; Tivoli, Secunderabad: 27844973CINEMAS

Painting exhibitionAn exhibition of paintings by LaluShaw is being held at Shrishti ArtGallery.Where: Shrishti Art Gallery,

Jubilee Hills,Rd No 15

When: Ongoing,11am onwards

Contact: (040) 2354 0023

Food and cricketGreat food and a great game ofcricket makes for great news. Headto News Cafe to catch the IPLmatches live and exclusive alongwith some great IPL special food.Where: News Cafe,

Inorbit Mall,Madhapur

When: Ongoing,8pm onwards

Contact: (040) 4010 1236

Telugu playA Telugu play titled Go To Hellwhich deals with the conflictbetween an orthodox father and amodern son will be presented atLamakaan on May 15.Where: Lamakaan,

Banjara Hills,Rd No 1

When: May 15,7pm onwards

Contact: 96427 31329

The awakeningA painting exhibition titled Buddha— The awakening will be held atIconart gallery. The exhibition which

Library summer campA library summer camp for parentsand faculty of UG and PG studentswill be held from May 10 onwards.The camp will provide guidance forfaculty and final year PG studentsfor National/State lectureship andscholarship test(NET/APSET) for `3,650.Where: Hyderabad library

services, Sagar View Complex

When: May 10 - June 10, Contact: (040) 2322 2247,

94412 37751

The amazing summershuttleA summer camp for children in theage group of 1-15 and for adults inThai flowers, stocking flowers andmarble painting is being held.Where: Plot-26, Gunrock Enclave,

SecunderabadWhen: 11am-1pm, 11am-5pmContact:98498 04416,

93921 05310

Etching printsA group exhibition of etching printsby various talented artists is beingheld. Where: Gallery Space,

Banjara Hills,Rd No 12

When: Ongoing,11am onwards

Contact: (040) 6554 1836

Picture perfectA 7-day photography workshop forchildren with the aim to introducethem to the basics of photographyis being held at Treasure House.The workshop is open for childrenin the age group of 12-18 years.Where: Treasure House,

Jubilee Hills,Rd No 36

When: Ongoing,11am onwards

Contact: (040) 2355 0118

Time to thinkThis — a thought provoking come-dy by Sharanya Ramprakash dealswith four modern thirty-year-olds.The play will be staged on May 19. Where: Nift campus,

MadhapurWhen: May19,

7.30pm onwardsContact: (040) 2311 4537

MetamorpherscenseA painting exhibition titledMetamorphescense by PranatuKhanna is being held at IconartGallery. The exhibition is on till May19.Where: Muse Art Gallery,

Tank BundWhen: Ongoing,

11am onwardsContact: (040) 2752 2999

was inaugurated on the occasion ofBuddha Purnima on May 6 will beon display . Where: Iconart Gallery,

Banjara Hills, Rd No12When: May 7 onwards,

11.30 am onwardsContact: 98499 68797

Solo exhibitionRamakanth’s Solo PaintingExhibition which deals with loneli-ness of a long distance runner.Where: Hyderabad Marriott,

Tank BundWhen: Ongoing,

11am onwardsContact: (040) 2752 2999

Yoga CampThe third part of a series of seven-day yoga camp will be held byYoga Healing Foundation inYousufguda. The last part willbeheld at Saroornagar from May20.Where: Krishnakanth Park,

YousufgudaWhen: May13 onwards,

5.15 am onwardsContact: 98489 92354

Cricket frenzyMocha and Mocha Express is host-ing IPL specials with live screeningof the match and various pizzaspaying ode to the IPL teams andtheir spirits.Where: Mocha — Banjara Hills

Inorbit MallWhen: Ongoing,

4pm onwards

WHITE WONDER

Contact: (040) 2335 0144

European film festivalA European Film Festival organisedby A delegation of the EuropeanUnion and the embassies of the EUMember States in India from May10 to May 20.Where: Alliance Francaise,

Banjara Hills,Rd No 3

When: May 10 onwards, 6pm onwards

Contact: (040) 2355 4483

Grill festivalHead to the grill festival to samplevarious grilled delicacies. Thats notall. Along with sampling somegreat food you can avail a 35 percent off as it is the anniversary ofthe restaurant. Where: The Grill Room,

Banjara Hills,Rd No 1

When: OngoingContact: (040) 6557 7722

Theatre workshopSamahaara is hosting special fourweek summer acting workshops.The workshops will be held for aduration of four weeks. The work-shops are being held at three differ-ent places in the City.Where: Vidyaranya School,

The Terrace,The Actor’s Studio

When: May 14 onwards,Monday-Friday

Contact: 83411 20303

N SH

IVA K

UM

AR

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 2012 2Spirit of Twin CitiesPage Two

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 2012 3Campaigns, hard news and spirit of Twin CitiesHyper LocalGLOBE AT A GLANCE

FAPCCI job fair in City

The Federation of Andhra PradeshChambers of Commerce and

Industry (FAPCCI) will be organising ajob fair from June 7 to July 28, 2012 inmajor cities of the State. In Hyderabadit will be on June 7 and 8.

The State Government was contem-plating to convert all the social wel-fare hostels into social welfare resi-

dential schools that would increase thenumber of social welfare(SW) residentialschools to nearly 1,000 in the State.

Launching the refresher training forprincipals of social welfare residentialinstitutions in educational administrationat MCHRD here, the minister for socialwelfare Pitani Satyanarayana informedthat the state government was contemplat-ing over an idea of upgrading all the socialwelfare hostels into SW residential schools.

Presently 288 social welfare residentialschools were running in the State andamong them 80 schools have classes up tointermediate level with 1,500 intermediatestudents studying there. The total numberof social welfare residential schools wouldreach 1,000, if social welfare hostels wereconverted into residential schools, headded. Stating that `12,000 was beingspent for each student of the social welfareresidential school as mess charges, theminister disclosed that the governmentwas spending in total (including teachingand non-teaching expenditure) `38,000per student. The total strength of SW resi-dential schools was 1.5 lakh students in thestate, he added.

Pointing out that the State governmentwas giving top priority to education and

welfare, Satyanarayana underlined theneed to improve the quality of education insocial welfare residential schools in tunewith education sector in the world. Heexhorted the principals of social welfareresidential schools to improve their man-agement skills and strive for betterment ofacademic system in the residential system.The teachers should also update theirknowledge to meet teaching requirementsin the changed education system, headded.

The SW residential schools shouldcompete with corporate schools in extend-ing quality education and achievingresults. Though social welfare residentialschools have been setup 28 years back (in1984), they have still not gained full faith ofthe people in terms of quality of education,he stated. He urged the principals andteachers to work to improve the quality ofeducation. The principal secretary of socialwelfare Reymond Pater, Social WelfareResidential Education Institutions SocietySecretary T Chiranjeevulu and others werepresent on the occasion. AGENCY

Mohd Subhanmohd.s@postnoon.com

The self-styled Jesus Christ,Maodud Ahmed Khanalias Essu Masi, was arre -sted on Monday by Rajen -

dra Nagar police for creating nui-sance in public. He is also cha -rged with assault on other faiths.

Maodud Ahmed Khan, 42, aresident of Upperpally Old Fortunder Rajendra Nagar police sta-tion limits was held after peopleturned their ire at his lecture onthe “second coming of Jesus’ at ameeting in Chintalmet area yes-terday. Local people caught holdof him and beat him up beforesummoning the police, RajendraNagar inspector S Jayaram toldPostnoon.

Maodud Ahmed Khan is agraduate who was unsuccessfulat business and turned to preach-ing. For as long as the family andfriend remember, he has been apreacher who believes that he isthe second Jesus and people areadvised to listen to him. He couldsave them, and in the process,

analyse other religions too whichantagonise others.

Inspector Jairam said thatMaodud shifts his residence oftenfor fear of getting attacked.Wherever he shifts, opposition tohim erupts and then he movesout.

Maodud Ahmed Khan is ahard nut, police say. He wascharged with the same offencesand was arrested earlier too buthe remains unfazed and goes onberating sceptics. In all, there are13 cases including assault againsthim in different police stations in

the City, since 2005.Police believe the man is well-

funded, probably from abroad.The source of his funding is underinvestigation, it is said.

He has tried to convert manyto Christianity which in turn gen-erates ill-will and hatred. Peoplefrom his own community,Muslims, wanted him to be ‘cruci-fied’ as he claims to be Jesus.

Sub inspector of RajendraNagar Venkateshwarlu, who isinvestigating this case, said themessiah is married but livesalone. “Jesus” is said to have mar-ried or lived in with four womenbefore his current wife.

Maodud had started a smallchit fund company, but after fewmonths he defaulted, therebycausing loss to many. The policethen arrested him in this connec-tion, Venkateshwarlu said. He hasuploaded videos of his preachingand send out messages askingpeople to believe in him or be pre-pared to be doomed. He was beat-en up several times before by thepublic. In districts he goes andpitches his tent and claims that hehas come to ‘save’ the sinners. AMuslim clergy is planning to issuea fatwa against him, it is learnt.

PRESENTLY 288 SOCIAL WELFARERESIDENTIAL SCHOOLS WERE RUN-NING IN THE STATE AND AMONGTHEM 80 SCHOOLS HAVE CLASSESUP TO INTERMEDIATE LEVEL WITH1,500 INTERMEDIATE STUDENTS.

Govt to convert SW hostelsinto residential schools?

Man held for assaultRamulu, 45, who used to ill-treat his

wife Prameela, 36, in drunken con-dition was held by the Gopalpurampolice on Monday. It is said thatPrameela was injured after the manattacked her in a drunken stupor.Hearing the screams, neighboursrushed in and saw her lying in a poolof blood. She was immediately takento the hospital and the enraged peoplegave a good thrashing to the manbefore summoning the police.

Body found in lake

The body of a youth, by the name ofNaresh Kumar, 24, was fished out

from the Himayat Sagar Lake. He wasallegedly fishing in the lake but fellinto it and died. He was an employeeof a private firm. Kumar was a residentof Budhwell. The police are investigat-ing the nature of the accident andwaiting for the post-mortem report todecide if it was an accident or a caseof murder.

CRIME

EDUCATION

‘Jesus Christ’ held in City

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 2012 4Campaigns, hard news and spirit of Twin CitiesHyper Local

GAS BOOKING IVRS NO:HP 9666023456Indane 9848824365

BSNL Complaints 198HMWS & SB Complaints 155313

POLICE CONTROL ROOM:Hyderabad 27852435Traffic Control Room 27852482DCP Traffic 23234065, 23243499FPollution Control Board 23887500

ELECTRICITY:General Complaints 155333Breakdown Section 23431178

23431179MUNICIPAL CORPORATION:Commissioner & Spl Officer 23262266

24166666RENC 23225267Engineering 23220418MCH Tankbund 23225397Emergency MCH Circle I&II 24525842MCH Circle III 24736912MCH Circle IV 23326975MCH Circle V 23326976MCH Circle VI MCH Complaints 1100Head Office 23225397

IVRS CUM MANUAL ENQUIRYPHONE NUMBERS(TRAIN & RESERVATION)RAILWAYSRail Nilayam 27833169, 27824216Railway Information 131Reservations 135Recorded Information 1345Enquiry (IVRS) 1331, 1332, 1333

WATER SUPPLY:Complaint Cell 155313Sewerage Complaint 23307328Hyd. Water Supply 23313163

HOSPITAL:General Hospital, Sec-bad 27505566Niloufer Hospital, Red Hills 23314095NIMS, Director, Punjagutta 23390933Osmania General Hospital 24600146Railway Hospital, Lalaguda 27001134Apollo, Jubilee Hills 23607777Care Hospital, Banjara Hills 30418888Care Hospital, Nampally 30417777Care Hospitals, Musheerabad 30419000Care Hospital, Sec-bad 30416666Kamineni Hospital,

LB Nagar 39879999

BLOOD BANKS:Blood Bank,Narayaguda 27567892Chiranjeevi Blood Bank 23559555Blood Bank Mediton Goal 23226624Red Cross, Vidyanagar 27633087ADRM Blood Bank 27035588Mythri Charitable Trust 27550238NTR Memorial Trust 30799999Care Banjara Hills 30418296

30417445

AMBULANCESApollo 23548888, 23607777Kamineni 24022222Medwin 23202902, 23204616Smile Line Dental Hospital 23747979Red Cross 27627973Niloufer Hospital 23314095Gandhi 23320332

AIRLINESAirport Director 27903785, 27906001For Air India Flight Information Toll free(from any network) for IC Flights18001801407And for All Flights: 1800227722Air India has revised its flight timings.For more information call (Toll free)18001801407, 1800227722 from BSNL/MTNL 04023430334 from otherlines and mobile Website;www.airindia.in

TOURISM OFFICESAP Tourism, Hyd 23262152/53/54Sec’bad 27893100Dept of Tourism 23453110India Tourism 23261360AP Tourism information Centre (24x7) 23450444, 23455999

UK Visa OfficeVFS India Pvt Ltd Building, 8-2-542/A,Sunil Chamber, Road No. 7Beside Meridian School, Banjara Hills-34. Working hours are from 8 AM to1 PM And 2 PM to 3PM.

MUSEUMSSalar Jung Museum 24523211AP State Museum 232431300/7641Nizams Museum 24521029

Helpline

Readers’ viewsWe invite you to write to us

comments, suggestions, viewpointor just about anything to

feedback@postnoon.com or #1246, Level 3, Jubilee Casa, Road

No 62, Jubilee Hills,Hyderabad – 500 033

or even by way ofa call on 4067 2222

Rahul Ramakrishna rahul.r@postnoon.com

As per the RTI Act of2005, it is mandatoryfor every governmentoffice or institution to

“provide a directory of itsemployees and officers com-plete with names, details andcontact numbers available tothe public.” This rule, the mostbasic of all rules on citizens’right to information, is barelyadhered to.

In addition to the frequentabsence of its employees, thePublic Information Board isnever seen nor heard of in any ofthe government offices. Onenquiry, some are evenastounded to know of its exis-tence. At government offices,common sense has always takenthe backseat.

The HMWS&SB office atKhairatabad is host to at least3,000 visitors a day. The Boardthat caters to the water and sew-

erage demands of the capitalcity has no trace of a PublicInformation Board that can helpyou contact your required offi-cer. The PRO at the office said,“We have received complaintsin the past and currently we arein the process of setting it up.Until then, people are free toapproach us and we will provide them the necessaryinformation.”

Although the GHMC headoffice has shown a great initia-tive by posting all the detailsrelated to Public Information,many of its divisional officescontinue to cause confusion,thanks to the absence of a PublicInformation Board within theirpremises. The KhairatabadMunicipal Corporation office isanother prime example of chaosprevailing in governmentoffices. Forget a PublicInformation Board, there is noteven an enquiry desk here, youronly guide through the manymazes of the office are the reclu-sive guards and clerks.

Joining the league elsewhereare the postal departments that

have lagged behind in updatingthemselves. The contact detailson the Public Information Boardare absent in the ChandanagarPostal department office. For awhile, these boards have beenhidden from view and despiterepeated complaints, they havenot been put up to public atten-tion. A visitor at the post office,Shakeel Ahmed says, “There isno name plate or board thathelps us know who we need toapproach. Sometimes, it’simpossible to tell if the officerwe need to speak to is missing oraway from duty.”

The district consumer forumis perhaps a highlight in its ownway. The Chandravihar buildingthat hosts among others, theconsumer forum, is devoid ofany sign that indicates the pres-ence of the consumer forumhere. More surprisingly, theforum does not have a help deskor an enquiry counter.

P Ramakrishna, an RTIactivist says, “It is mandatory forany government office ordepartment to put up a PublicInformation Board. Some of thepostal offices in Chandanagarand Serilingampally do not evenhave a Public InformationOfficer in-charge. Also, after thescheduled transfers of officials,the boards are not updated andneither are the websites.”

He alleges, that many RTIsfiled with the HMDA have beenforwarded by the PIO to someother concerned officials andwithin this myriad maze, theserequests have not been repliedto. Updating websites is alsoanother task that has slippedour civil servants’ attention.Centre for Good Governancesite, for instance, has YSR as theCM. Need we say more?

Inkeshaf Ahmedahmed.m@postnoon.com

Government schools in theCity which impart educa-tion to thousands of chil-

dren in Hyderabad, have turneddefaulters of drinking water bills.This is not only creating problemsfor the HMWS&SB, the supplier ofdri nking water to over 8 lakhconsu mers, but also mounting itsarr ea rs. The official statistics ofthe boa rd show that the waterboard has a total arrear of `190crore till date. A majority of thedefaulters include various govern-ment dep a rt ments and over 90per cent of government schools.

“This is a difficult situation forus. Most of the governmentschools do not pay their monthlydrinking water bills. This hasresulted in piling up of theirarrears and the amount ran intothousands of rupees,” said DSubbaramaiah, joint director offinance wing of HMWS&SB.

It was found that many ofthese schools are unable to paythe dues because of non-availabil-ity of funds. “We don’t have fundsto pay these bills. This is where thedelay starts,” K Surekha, head mis-tress of Government Girls HighSchool, Nampally defended.Before Surekha took charge, theschool had an accumulated arrearof `10,252. However, Surekhacleared the arrears as the schoolreceived funds under the RajivVidya Mission Scheme (RVM).

“This (RVM) is a boon for us. Thegovernment is sanctioning a spe-cific amount towards payment ofelectricity and drinking watercharges every month under thescheme,” she said.

The head master of Govern -ment High School, Punjagutta RdNo 1, which is now being run froma premises of YellareddgudaGovernment High School informsthat the school has arrears of`4,000 when it comes to drinkingwater. “We are planning to pay thebills very soon,” he said. The pay-ment of electricity and drinkingwater charges under RVM hadbegun about two years ago, givinga breather to many governmentschool managements.

Demand for free supply Many of these school authorities,raising an interesting point, askedthe board to supply drinking waterfree of cost as they are also render-ing a noble service by impartingeducation.

“Why should we pay moneyfor drinking water? We are ownedby the government and are doing anoble service. Can’t the board sup-ply drinking water free of cost tous?” questioned Anur adha, princi-pal of Government Junior CollegeAliya. She informed that they don’thave specific funds to pay utilitybills.

The head master of theGovernment High SchoolPunjagutta No 1, J Pitchaiah alsoexpressed similar feelings.Although he said they would clearthe dues soon, free supply wouldhelp, he added.

GOVERNANCE

WATERRTI: For some,YSR is still CM!Most government offices either don’t have the public informationboard or don’t update their officers’ lists, leading to confusion

Schools turn defaulters

TIMOTHY RAYANG

ILLPADRINO

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 2012 5Campaigns, hard news and spirit of Twin CitiesHyper Local

U Srinivassrinivas.u@postnoon.com

There was no breach ofsecurity or no friends weretaken on a joy ride byCaptain Barun Gupta in

the CM’s chopper Agusta AW139,according to NV Ramana Reddyspecial secretary to the govern-ment (political and NRI affairs)and director of the protocol.Ramana is also managing directorfor Aviation Corporation.

Talking to Postnoon RamanaReddy said that It was merely anallegation made by an outsourcedemployee who was removed fromthe service for making acts ofbreach of security twice. He wasnot an employee of the AviationCorporation.

It was reported that the pilot ofthe chief minister’s helicopter hadthe other day given a joy ride to hisgirl friends. The chief secretaryPankaj Dwivedi had asked for aninquiry.

The preliminary investigationrevealed that nothing of that sorthad happened. Captain BarunGupta reported to Ramana Reddyyesterday at the State secretariat inhis office and clarified that therewas no breach of security or no joyrides were given in the CM’s chop-per. The ousted employee hadplanted the story to spite the pilot,

it was said.Ramana said the technical

staff generally goes on a test flightand also landing before the takeoff happens for a VVIP. Since thischopper is being used by the chiefminister, the test flights are verycommon keeping earlier accidentsand other mishaps in mind.Ramana said that even if it is tech-

nical staff there will be entries inlog book and that cannot beignored.

Every flight or test flight isrecorded and no one can escapefrom the reality.

Gupta also met Chief MinisterKiran Kumar Reddy and explainedto him on the allegations andabout the test flight in March.

When asked about the bad trackrecord of Gupta in flying the chop-pers, and an earlier accident,Ramana agreed that this aspecthas to be looked into.

On the other hand the CM atpresent is using private choppersfor his election tour as he cannotuse the official chopper because ofthe election code.

But there are records to showthat the DGP in fact wanted to usethe CM’s chopper for making anaerial survey of the Maoist infestedareas in the State.

New chopper for thegovernment?Ramana agreed that there was aproposal with the State govern-ment to buy a new chopper for theVVIPs. Now the State governmenthas one chopper at its disposalwhile the old one crashed with theformer chief minister YSRajasekhar Reddy.

There is every need for the gov-ernment to buy a new chopper asa standby chopper is required. Butthe proposal has been pendingsince the last three years accordingto Ramana.

It was a test flight, no joyride

Postnoon Newsfeedback@postnoon.com

Poll expenditure forthe forthcoming by-elections will sky-

rocket, agree leaders cut-ting across the party lines.Multi-cornered contest isone reason for the likelyoverspending. Little won-der, all the parties haveselected candidates withdeep pockets.

In fact, no one canpromise that the electionspending will be within

the limits prescribed bythe election commission.

The chief electoral offi-cer Banwarlal said thelimit for a parliamentaryconstituency now is `40lakh as against the earlier`25 lakh. The limit forAssembly constituenciesis `16 lakh (it was `10 lakhearlier).

Kummari Krishna, aCongress leader said thatthis will be grossly insuffi-cient. “You can’t fight amunicipal election withthis amount,” sheobserved.

But, spending will notbe a constraint as it is a do

or die situation for all thestake holders — theCongress, TDP and theYSRC. This would be thesemi-final for the 2014general elections.

TDP leader VarlaRamaiah agreed that onehas to spend for winningthe election but the TDPcannot be a match to therich Congress and theYSRC, he said.

But leaders cuttingacross the party lines areof the opinion that the YSRCongress party will be ableto win more seats as theywere sitting MLAs earlier.

For Congress, it is thefuture of CM Kiran KumarReddy and also the party.All the political partiespreferred candidates witha sound financial back-ground and support ofheavy weights.

Chandrababu Naiduhad gone on record that itwas very difficult for TDPto face the bypolls fromtime to time.

When it comes toAssembly electionsTirupathi, Udayagiri andOngole are the seats wherehuge amounts are likely tobe spent.

Winning, not spending, isthe criterion this by-election

General Insurance Employees’Association, Hyderabad, has demand-

ed that the Central government merges thefour Public Sector General InsuranceCompanies and accord them the status onpar with Life Insurance Corporation ofIndia (LIC).

Speaking to the media on Monday, AllIndia Insurance Employees’ Associationjoint secretary V Ramesh wanted theCentre to stop disinvestment of PublicSector General Insurance Companies. Healleged that the Central government wasconspiring to privatise the four generalinsurance companies —N a t i o n a l

Insurance Co, the New India Assurance Co,the Oriental Insurance Co and UnitedIndia Insurance Co. Though the four pub-lic sector general insurance companieswere constantly serving the people andsociety with dedication and playing theirpart in strengthening the economy of thecountry, the earlier NDA government hadopened the gates for private players in thegeneral insurance sector in 2000. Healleged that the UPA government was try-ing to introduce Insurance AmendmentAct in the on-going Parliament session, topermit private players into the sector.

National Insurance CompanyHyderabad DGM D Nadhamuni allegedthe Central government was trying to handover insurance companies to private play-

ers. ^dbk`v

Public sector generalinsurance cos flay govt policy

SECURITY

POLITICS

INSURANCE

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 2012 6Campaigns, hard news and spirit of Twin CitiesHyper Local

1 Year` 349/-

6 Months` 199/-

SubscriptionOffer

Hyderabad’s first afternoon newspaper

Subscribe Today!

040 - 4067 2222subscription@postnoon.com

Sneha M and Bhavneet Sfeedback@postnoon.com

Malkajgiri is one of thelargest stretches of resi-dential areas in the City, itis a combination of inde-

pendent houses and apartments. The locality is perfect for a middle

class person to buy a house. Apart frombeing an ideal residential area,Malkajgiri has wide roads and literallyeverything you can ask for, from the-atres to shopping malls.

Like every other locality in the City,Malkajgiri too has its share of prob-lems. The main issue being the dogmenace.

Roshan Vijay, a resident of SaiNagar colony, says, “Whenever I go outin the evening I make sure I carry astick in my hand to keep myself safefrom dog attacks. There are around 50to 60 stray dogs in my colony”.

The other problem is water short-age in summer and the disturbancecaused by the drunkards. AvinashSingh, a resident of the same colony,complains, “I'm so scared to send my

sister out in the evening because of thedrunkards. They pose a severe threat tothe colony girls.”

The adjacent Anand Bagh neigh-bourhood is another treat to the eyes.It is divided into two parts — EastAnand Bagh and West Anand Bagh.The area consists of picturesquecolonies. Aayushi Dalliparthy a resi-dent of East Anand bagh says, “Mylocality is very beautiful, when I feellow I can just go out for a stroll in thestreets. It has a bright and colourfulambience.” The residents’ only com-plaint about the area is the poor sanita-tion of the streets.

Safilguda is one of the oldest and

most preserved localities of the City, itis a rare combination of residentialcolonies and commercial complexes.Everything you need is available withinthe radius of two kilometres. A distur-bance to the otherwise calm locality isthe railway tracks.

The lake park was earlier a popularattraction for the locals. But now thesituation is different.

The lake is now filled with thewaste coming from the neighbouringcolonies. BV Sharma a resident ofKrupa Complex says, “My locality is asafe place to live in. The only problemin the locality is the power cuts in sum-mer and the disturbance caused by therailway tracks.”

When we tried to contact Y PremKumar, the corporator of OldMalkajgiri, he refused to comment onthe issue.

Neredmet cross-roads is an areadedicated to commercial complexes, itis the one stop destination to the resi-dents nearby. It justifies the statement“Shop, eat, celebrate”. It has everythingone needs from shopping malls, eater-ies, theatres and hospitals.

Shopping, homes and much moreMalkajgiri offers everything that one needs — from independenthouses, apartments and shopping malls to hospitals and eateries

Pruthvi R and Sukriti S feedback@postnoon.com

“Adog is a man’s companion. Dogneeds no charity but love and atten-

tion,” says Vileena, member, AnimalRehabilitation and Protection Force(ARPF).

The ARPF, Hyderabad, which wasawarded ‘The best green group’ byAndhra Pradesh Environment Connect(APEC), aspires to bring the much neededchange in our attitude to pet dogs.Project Fighter, an awareness campaignabout canine distemper, instituted in thememory of a St Bernard puppy whichdied of the disease recently will culmi-nate in a workshop on Sunday.

Canine distemper is a highly conta-gious disease in dogs worldwide. This is

not 100 per cent curable but is pre-ventable. “Project Fighter aims at educat-ing dog owners about canine distemperat the root level. Expert veterinarians willhelp the owners understand the impor-tance of timeous vaccination and properhygienic conditions for their pet’s longerlife. This will be the perfect platformwhere all the owners concerns regardingpets will be answered,” says NiharParulekar, founder, ARPF.

“If you care about your pets, sparetime to attend Project Fighter. This willhelp you prevent your pets developingthe deadly virus,” Parulekar pleads.

It was formed of dedicated and younganimal lovers trying to prevent poachingof wildlife and rehabilitate disowned andinjured pets. It has 300 members and ser-vice-minded veterinarians.

ARPF has been facing a shortage offunds and rescue shelters. ARPF has suc-cessfully rescued 30 snakes, 4 fawns, 2squirrels, 12 puppies, 2 peacocks, 2 kitesand 1 bat. Space has been a major prob-lem. “Its good to see the youth coming upwith such workshops,” says Dr JacobMathews, a key member.

SAI RAM REDDY

Workshop on caninedistemper to be held

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 2012 7Campaigns, hard news and spirit of Twin CitiesHyper Local

FABRICATION

CLASSIFIEDS

HEALTHMillennium DentalClinic, film nagar mainroad, opp: cafemelange, jubilee hills,Hyd- Ph: 040-31000889

REAL ESTATE100 Acres farm land@Warangal Highway inBhongir, 20 FruitPlants & ResortMembership for moredetails Contact: SriHema 7386064709

EDUCATION

WANTEDWanted Receptionist(F) Executives (M)Office Boys (M) withgood communicationto work in Hyderabad.QLY- No Bar.Call-9295020333

AUTOMOBILES

SEMINARTo Get Guidance andfree solutions for allyour problems connectwith angels. Tojoin this new world ofmeditation attendangel therapy work-shop. For registration:9393858950www.turya.co.in

Anubha K Singhanubha.k@postnoon.com

When RaveenaTandon had herbaby she did it andwas closely fol-

lowed by the likes of HrithikRoshan, Sanjay Dutt andMandira Bedi. The latestexpectant mother to join theBollywood bandwagon of par-ents choosing to bank theirchild’s stem cells is ShilpaShetty. In fact, so taken is sheby the whole concept that sheis even going to endorse a stemcell bank. While news of celebsopting for stem cell bankingcontinue to generate interests,expectant parents in the Citytoo are investing in it.

While the whole celebrityangle might be a driving forcefor some, for others it is per-sonal tragedy that has provedto be an eye-opener. Take forinstance Swapnil Jain, a soft-ware engineer, who recentlyhad his first child. Only a fewyears ago Swapnil’s youngersister had a healthy baby. Thefamily was overjoyed at thebaby’s birth and all was goinggreat. But the joy was shortlived as the baby passed awaydue to an illness. According todoctors, the baby could havebeen cured with stem cell

treatment. “We were devastat-ed when the baby died. Whenmy wife and I learnt that wewere going to have a baby, wedecided to bank the stemcells,” he said.

“My baby is now sevenmonths old and by god’s gracehe is healthy and fine. But lifeis unpredictable and I wantedto be prepared for any sort ofuncertainties. Stem cell bank-ing is like investing in healthinsurance. It is expensive, butmost stem cell banks have theoption of paying through EMIs.At the end of the day it is peaceof mind for us,” he added.

“When my wife was preg-nant, I wasn’t even aware of ittill her gynaecologist told us.The cost however was a deter-rent. But then I read up a lotabout this online and dis-cussed with our family, beforefinally decided to go aheadwith stem cell banking for ourbaby. At least now we knowthat our baby is protected,”said Krishna Mogulu, an MNCemployee.

According to Dr SubhadraDravida, managing directorand CEO Transcell BiologicsPvt Ltd, “Stem cell therapy isgaining lot of popularity. Withthe cord blood many bloodrelated disorders can be curedand with the cord tissue manyneurological diseases can alsobe addressed. Even conditionslike autism and diabetes can be

cured. While the science ofstem cell therapy is expandingrapidly there is still a lot ofawareness required.”

For others however, it isjust not viable. “My wife ispregnant and wants to opt forit. But I am not prepared as it isexpensive and doesn’t really

help with every ailment. Forpeople with a family history ofthalassaemia, leukaemia andblood disorders it might makemore sense. I am still confusedas it could potentially burn ahole in my pocket,” said NitinSingh, technical lead in a lead-ing corporate firm.

Banking of a different kindStem cell banking is fast gaining popularity among expectant parents whodon’t mind paying huge sums to ensure their offspring’s safety

TREND

Ravi Bhanshalifeedback@postnoon.com

Awalk down lanes of busy markets inand Charminar will tell us how theCity has been home to many

migrants. Shantiram Bokadia, migrated toHyderabad 34-years-ago from his village inRajasthan in hope of a better future.Hyderabad had not belied his hopes. “Iopened a small store where I soldunbranded silver jewellery. Initially thebusiness was very slow but with the pas-sage of time I earned the faith of peopleand now the business is good,” saysShantiram. Many jewellery stores operat-ing in the Old City are owned and man-aged by the second generation of migra-tors from Rajasthan. Not only have theymade the City their home but have alsocontributed to the trade and commerce.

“I’ve accepted this as my home.Though I have great affection for my nativetown, I would still call Hyderabad as home.My children are more Hyderabadi than theneighbourhood children,” laughs Praveen,

owner of a gold jewellery showroom atPatherghat, Charminar. But there someproblems which we Rajasthani’s face. Oneof them is that there is not enough govern-mental support,” Praveen shares.

Aas matrimony is concerned, mostRajasthanis try to get their life partnersfrom their ancestral hometowns . “Thoughwe do not have a problem in settling downanywhere in the world, we like to go back

to our hometown to search for partnersand in case we don’t find a suitable mate,we look in other cities. There are agenciesand the Samaj also helps,” he added.

There are around 1.25 lakh Rajasthaniswho live and work in Hyderabad.Maheshwaris and Sikhwals are present inHyderabad. “Hyderabad is so much likeDelhi and Mumbai, yet so different. Thishas a lot to do with the warm peoplehere,”says Milap Chand .

Some of them have occupied highpositions such as Prem Singh Rathod (ex-MLA), Vijay Lakshmi Kabra (ex-corpora-tor) and B Kishanlal Agarwal (ex-mayor).There are associations which organise pro-grammes and help the poor and needy.

A very important festival whichRajasthanis celebrate in Hyderabad isDeepavali. “We have meetings every fort-night. During festivals, we celebrate in atraditional way,” says Narayan DasMundala, president, Maheshwari SamajMandal. “We initially had a problem butnow are comfortable,” says Ashok jain.“Hyderabad is a home away from home,”he added. “We initially had language prob-lems, but now are fluent in Telugu,” saysNayan Parikh.

Chief electoral officer Bhanwarlal onMonday informed that an all-party

meeting would be organised on May 17, inconnection with the by-elections to be heldto 18 Assembly Constituencies and one LokSabha seat. Bhanwarlal stated that the ECwas taking up all required steps to ensurefree and fair polls in the by-elections. He wasseeking reports and getting CDs of leaders’speeches when allegations came about vio-lation of model code of conduct. AGENCY

All-party meet to beheld on May 17: CEO

‘It’s just like other cities, yet so different’COMMUNITY

No of couples opting for stem cell banking: 70 per monthCost of stem cell banking: `75,000 to `1lakh

for 21 years (approx)

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 2012 8Campaigns, hard news and spirit of Twin CitiesHyper Local

THE UNBREAKABLE GLASS CEILINGHemanth Kumarhemanth.k@postnoon.com

There’s no denying thatfilm industries acrossthe world are dominat-ed by men and it’s allthe more evident in our

country. Despite its 90 year histo-ry, the Telugu film industry hasrarely wrested the power to callthe shots in the hands of theactresses. In the 50s and 60s,actresses like Bhanumati andSavitri, two of the biggest stars ofthe era, went on direct a fewfilms, apart from producing ahandful of films. Later, VijayaNirmala rose to prominence andwent on to direct 47 films. Suchinstances are far and fewbetween. Truth is, actressesalmost always end up being atthe end of the value chain anddon’t have a major say in the cre-ative process.

Take a sample of some of thebiggest films like Businessman,

Racha, Dhammu, Gabbar Singhor Dookudu, the focus is alwayson the hero. Right from remuner-ation to characterisation in films,the differences between actorsand actresses are obvious. Theremuneration of top leagueactresses in Tollywood rangesfrom `1 to 1.5 crore whereas fourof the biggest actors charge northof `10 crore. Most of the big bud-get films are written keeping thestar in view, although this doesn’tapply to actresses. Except for ahandful of films like Arundhati,Ammoru, Anukokunda Oka Rojuand Anasuya, women-centricfilms hardly sell at the box office.“Most of the times, it doesn’tmatter who the heroine is.Producers and directors preferwhoever is good. Sometimes,there’s no character sketch eitherbefore deciding who will play thefemale lead,” says Taapsee. Theselection of a heroine is usually

done after finalising the scriptand cinematographers and othertechnicians. “As a result, they areon a low budget when it comesto selecting a heroine. If anestablished actress doesn’t signthe film, the producers opt for anew face. What really surprisesme is that their biggest worry iswhether an actress looks glam-orous rather than her perfor-mance,” Taapsee adds.

Apart from the producer andthe director, actors are alsoinvolved in scripting, suggestingwho should be on-board a pro-ject and even post-production.What happens when an actresswants to add her perspective inthis process? “There’s a notionthat heroines don’t know any-thing about cinema. We aren’teven shown films before therelease. It’s true that filmmakersdon’t take actresses seriously inmost cases,” Taapsee replies.

Lakshmi Manchu, who tookthe mantle to produce two filmsapart from acting in them, adds anew perspective to this debate.“You can’t generalise such things.If an actress doesn’t like the rolethen she has the choice of notdoing it. One must realise thatthe producer is paying the actorsto do what he wants them to do.How a film shapes up alsodepends on who makes the finalcall,” she says adding, “Actorsare hired to act and they shouldstick to that. It’s better wheneveryone lets the director or thewriter do his job because it’s ulti-mately his vision which is moreimportant.” So will the situationever change? “I believe that a lotof women want to be in the filmindustry especially as writers,producers and directors. Peopleshould follow their dreams,” shesays.

It’s a long road ahead foractresses to break the glass ceil-ing and the problem boils downto how much market one has.Neelima Tirumalasetty, producerof Panjaa, says, “I think the rea-sons for actresses not having asay in creative process are mani-fold such as the larger than lifeimage of the heroes whichattracts the audience and thehuge costs of making a moviewith big stars. Filmmakers wantto keep their risk exposure to theminimum. At the end of the dayit’s all about making the moviecommercially viable. All said anddone, it is time that small budgetmovies take the first step towardsreversing the trend. I would per-sonally love to see a Kahaani inTelugu.” Will the audience patro-nise such films? Your guess is asgood as ours.

Despite theirimmense popularity amongthe masses,actresses rarelyget a chance tocall the shotswhile making afilm. We find outmore about thestatus quo.

NSE1kg= `53,300

SILVER10g= `28,4004,920.65 12.85

GOLD`86.70

POUNDBSE16,276.72 60.88 `53.80

DOLLARTUESDAY, MAY 15, 20129Matters of saving and spendingBusiness

NUMEROLOGY

THUS SPAKE

TOUGH CALL

JOINT VENTURE

`565.98crore

was the net profit of AshokLeyland last fiscal, compared

to `631.30 crore in the previous fiscal. The companyhad a turnover of `12,841.99

crore last fiscal.

The whole pointwas, even if you’resmart, you canmake mistakesand since thesebanks are insuredbacked up by tax-payers, we don’twant you takingrisks where even-tually we mightend up having tobail you out again.

Barack Obama,US President

Moody’s slashed its creditratings by up to four notchesfor 26 Italian banks onMonday, including UniCreditand Intesa Sanpaolo, citingtheir vulnerability to Italy’srecession and more troublein the eurozone. “The ratingsfor Italian banks are nowamongst the lowest withinadvanced European coun-tries, reflecting these banks’susceptibility to the adverseoperating environments inItaly and Europe,"Moody’s said.

Japan’s cash-bleeding elec-tronics giants Sony andPanasonic are looking to joinforces to produce next gen-eration televisions in a bidto claw back market fromSouth Korean rivals, a reportsaid on Tuesday. The firmswant to speed up the devel-opment of large-screenorganic electroluminescence(OEL) televisions, which con-sume less power and offer asharper picture than conven-tional flat panels. OEL iswidely expected to be thedominant technology in thenext generation of televi-sions. Both companies areaiming to commercialise OELTVs by fiscal 2015.

Prudhvi Raju Kprudhvi.k@postnoon.com

You have to dream beforeyour dreams can cometrue,” said Abdul Kalam.This is what as a young

girl, Durga Bhavani did. Shedreamt of becoming anentrepreneur. To pursue herdream, she studied chartedaccountancy and never workedfor any company and patientlywaited to start business of herown, Universal MedicalCorporation in 1994, which sup-plies medical equipment andchemicals to diagnostics andhospitals.

“I was 32 and children start-ed going to school. I felt that wasthe right time to start business. Idid not want to start in a big wayand take risk as children weregrowing. I got `1.5 lakh from myfather as an investment andlater repaid him. UMC works asa dealer for various lab equip-ment and chemical manufac-tures,” she said.

She has a dream and themanagement skills to turn it into reality. “I don’t have anyknowledge in the pharmaceuti-cal or medical field. Neither do Iknow the proper spellings of thechemicals. But I know how tomanage and run the operationsof the company. I used to go tothe hospitals and diagnosticcentres for orders. There werenot any many major challenges.The company broke even in twoyears and has reached revenuesof `4crore in 2006,”

UMC got an unexpected hitthe same year. She says, “Thecompany from where wesourced our chemicals andequipment was closed downdue to internal issues. As part ofthe policy, we pay money inadvance for the stock and it gotstuck with the company. We lost

around `15 lakh but did not loseour morale,”

“In no time, we got offerfrom other company as we havegood client base and name inthe industry. Not only that, ourgood will and discipline helps useven if there is a late payment attimes,” she says. UMC hasrevived from the turmoil andhas reached `2.5 crore in rev-enues last fiscal.

When asked why the compa-ny had not grown exponentially.She says, “I deliberately did notlet grow the company. When youwant to grow rapidly, there are

many risks. I have to tie up withunknown clients and compa-nies to do business. We are quietchoosy with the companies andclientèle. Unless, they arenotable and trusted, we don’twant to involve with them. I mayalso lose the precious time that Ihave, which I am spending onvarious activities,”

Durga Bhavani did not forgether childhood dream even after40 years. Not only she realisedher dream, but want to do con-tribute to whatever possible forthe people who are passionateof similar dreams. She devotestime, when ever needed atAssociation of ladyEntrepreneurs of AndhraPradesh (ALEAP). “I served invarious positions at ALEAP andbecame active part ofentrepreneurship developmentprogram (EDP). If my businessfulfils the financial needs,ALEAP satisfies me on personalfront,”she says.

WASHINGTON: SeniorRepublican Senator John McCaintoday made a strong pitch for afree trade agreement with India,as he slammed the Obamaadministration for failing toaggressively tap America’s tradepotential with Asian nations.

Speaking at the Center forStrategic and International Stu -dies, a Washington-based think-tank, the lawmakers said the USshould have aimed for a FreeTrade Agreement (FTA) with India,and emphasised that America’slong-term strategic and economicsuccess requires an ambitioustrade strategy in Asia.

“India is now negotiating anFTA with the European Union.And yet, we will not even concludea narrower Bilateral Invest mentTreaty with India, let alone a fullFTA, as we should," said the pow-erful Republican Senator.

He cited a report that hadfound that as of last year, Asiancountries had concluded or werenegotiating nearly 300 trade agree-ments — none of which includedthe US. He said the launch of theTrans-Pacific Partnership hasbrightened the picture, but thedeal may still be years away andthe US should start focussing onbilateral treaties. PTI

John McCainseeks earlyFTA with India

Dare to dream big

SYDNEY: Apple co-founderSteve Wozniak has warned MarkZuckerberg about the dangers ofgoing public as Facebook countsdown to its eagerly awaitedshare offering.

The world’s leadingsocial network is expectedto start trading on the tech-heavy Nasdaq on Friday,although the timetable has notbeen confirmed.

Apple went public in 1980and Wozniak, who is visitingAustralia, said being exposed to

the demands of shareholders wasa tough lesson.

“All of a sudden you haveshareholders that are directing

the company and demand-ing answers and gettingupset if things aren’tgoing as well as theyhoped," he told the

Australian FinancialReview on Tuesday.

“Once you go post-IPO, all ofa sudden Mark Zuckerberg canbe more at the mercy of the own-ers. AFP

Wozniak warns Zuckerberg ondangers of going publicMOSCOW: Computer giant

Ap ple has contracted specialistsfrom Russian anti-virus compa-ny Kaspersky Lab to analyse thevulnerabilities of its MacOS X operating systemand improve its security.

The OS X securityissue became important inearly April, when Dr. Web, aRussian computer security com-pany, reported finding botnets— or networks of compromisedcomputers controlled by hack-ers — that included more than500,000 infected Macs.

It was previously thought

that Apple computers enjoyedbetter protection from viruses

than computers operating onMicrosoft Windows. The

appearance of this latestthreat has forced Apple toaddress the security issue,

RIA Novosti reported cit-ing the computing.co.uk

website.“Apple recently invited us to

improve its security. We’vebegun an analysis of its vulnera-bilities, and the malware target-ing it," said Kaspersky chieftechnology officer NikolaiGrebennikov. AFP

Company started: 1994Number of clients: 60Number of employees: 6Revenues lastfiscal: `2.5 croreRevenue targetthis fiscal: `4 crore

Apple ropes in Kaspersky

SRINIVAS SETTY

Durga Bhavani, founder, Universal Medical Corporation

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 201210India unveiled India‑View

CHENNAI/MADURAI: Thewar of words between controver-sial Karnataka-based spiritualleader Nithyananda and thoseopposing his anointment as the293rd pontiff of the over 1500-year-old Madurai AadheenamMutt late last month is turningmurkier by the day.

The latest is the decision ofactor Ranjitha Menon to file adefamation suit against theHindu seer Kanchi Sankara -charya Jayendra Saraswat hi forhis comments on the selectionof Nithyananda as junior pontiffof the Madurai Mutt, a leadingmonastery of the Shaivite order.The Kanchi seer, who is opposedto Nithya nanda’s anointment,told reporters that the traditionof the Madurai Aadheenam isfor its seers to tonsure theirheads and wear a rudraksha, buta woman by the name ofRanjitha was with Nithyananda.

“Jayendra has said a womanby the name of Ranjitha seemsto be with Nithyananda. Thiscomment is certainly unwar-ranted in the context of hisopposition to the choice ofNithy a nanda as the junior pon-tiff of Madurai Aadheenam. Hiscomment defa mes my clientand hence the suit,” MurugaiyanBabu, the lawyer for Menon, toldIANS. Reacting to the Kanchiseer’s views, Nithyananda saidJayendra Saraswathi has nolocus standi in the matter as hehimself is facing murdercharges. The Kanchi seer is fac-ing charges in the 2004 murderof Sankararaman, a Kanchi mutt

temple manager.Those in Jayendra Sarasw -

athi’s camp are calling Ranj itha’ssuit a publicity stunt.

Valasai K Jayaraman, spoke -s p erson for the Kanchi Mutt,told IANS “Nithyananda needspublicity now. He could havesimply said Ranjitha is just hisdisciple and the matter wouldhave ended there and then. Wewill face the defamation case.”

Ranjitha’s decision hasangered Hindu outfits, whichare already seething with rage atNithyananda’s appointment asthe junior pontiff.

S Jaisankar, founder presidentof the Vijaya Bharatha Makka lKatchi, told IANS “There is noth-ing defamatory in what theKanchi seer has said. It is just anadvice to Nithyananda citing the

tradition of the Madurai Mutt.”Two years ago, a video clip-

ping showing Nithyananda in acompromising position withMenon was telecast by televi-sion channels.

Soon after, Nithyananda wason the run and was arrested inHimachal Pradesh and releasedon bail later. RecentlyNithyananda had challengedthe heads of other mutts toinstall cameras in their bed-room and said he was willing toset an example.

Madurai Aadheenam is saidto be over 1,500 years old. Itacquired a halo when it waspatronised by the seventh cen-tury Shaivaite saint ThirugnanaSambandar, one of the 63‘nayanmars’. Sambandar wasinstrumental in the revival of

Hinduism in Tamil Nadu wherethe popular faiths were Jainismand Buddhism. According tolegend, Sambandar brought theJain Pandya King Koon Pandyainto the Hindu fold.

The Madurai Aadheenam issaid to own properties worthseveral crores of rupees thoughno clear estimation is available.

According to Arjun Sampath,president of the Hindu MakkalKatchi, Nithyananda had stayedat the Madurai Aadheenam twoweeks prior to his anointmentas the junior pontiff.

“At that time we were toldthat Nithyananda was there todiscuss the Shaivaite philoso-phy. Later the head of theMadurai Mutt went toNithyananda’s Dhyanapeetaminternational headquarters inKarnataka,” Sampath said.

On April 27, Sri Arunagirin -atha Gnanasamb anda DesikaParamacharya, the 292nd pon-tiff of Madurai Aadhe enam,declared Nithyan anda as hissuccessor at a ceremony heldthere. Two days later a similarevent was held in Madurai.

While the current head ofthe Madurai Aadheenamstressed his right to choose hissuccessor, Nithyananda termedthe ones opposing him as landmafia who were busy enjoyingits properties.

Nithyananda also termedthe raids by the Income TaxDepartment at the MaduraiAadheenam office as instigatedby the DMK, an allegation whichthe latter has dismissed. IANS

Disabilityfailed to holdback this youthKOLKATA: Asperger’s syn-drome has never been a disabilityfor Shashank Agarwal. The 20-year-old has invented a light sen-sitive alarm to monitor tigers, avertical-axis windmill that canwithstand strong winds and anaeroponic structure to growplants sans soil.

Now the teenager is going toNew Zealand to do a degree inenvironmental management.

“Once I get my degree and therequisite experience, I plan tostart a company and introducetechnologies for ecological con-servation and provide employ-ment opportunities to others,”Shashank told IANS.

However, future looked not thisbright some time back. Asp erger’ssyndrome is a form of au tism.Those suffering from it find it moredifficult to communicate andinteract, which can lead to hi ghlevels of anxiety and confusion.

Suffering from a mild form ofAsperger’s since his childhood,

Sh ashank was not ready to studyin a mainstream school. His par-ents put him in Akshar Schoolhere, set up for mentally chal-lenged children. Shashank’sautism type makes social interac-tion difficult and creates repeti-tive behaviour and interests.However, linguistic and cognitivematters develop normally in theaffected child.

Shashank left the school aftermatriculation and cleared his hi -gher secondary exam in huma ni -ties from The Heritage School in2011. “He had an aptitude for sci-ence from the beginning. We puthim in charge of the school’s sci-ence fests which he executed bril-liantly. Although he has passedout, he is participating in thisyear’s fest too,” said The HeritageSchool principal Seema Sapru.

Shashank is an expert in recy-cling and transforming magazinepages, pen refills, cardboards intomodels that store solar power,some of which adorn the princi-pal’s room. His expertise evenimpressed the authorities of theNew Zealand’s Southern Instituteof Technology who decided toforgo the mandatory Internat io -nal English Language TestingSystem (IELTS) examination forShashank.

Shashank said his pet projectis a portable solar torch. IANS

DALHOUSIE/SHIMLA: The40-year-old chapter of academ-ic excellence being run byDalhousie Public School (DPS)may be slammed shut, with aone-man commission of theHimachal Pradesh governmentrecommending vesting of theentire school land located inpicturesque Dalhousie, about350 km from Shimla.

The commission, headed byJustice DP Sood, former judge ofthe Himachal Pradesh HighCourt, has made recommenda-tions after finding glaring viola-tions by the school authoritiesin property transactions andoriginal lease deed. Vesting ofthe school would mean acquir-ing the entire premises.

The judicial commission, setup on the recommendation ofthe state assembly, probed ille-gal land transactions carried outacross the state from 2003 toMarch 2011.

DPS, established in 1970,

attracts NRIs and prominentpeople from the region. It alsohas students from foreign coun-tries, including the US, Canada,Britain and several otherEuropean nations.

The commission, probinglease deeds relating to theschool land, says the school gotthe land from the governmenton a lease of 99 years in 1937,

with a condition of its renewalafter 30 years.

The commission also pickshole in the purchase of 27hectares land by school authori-ties Jan 28, 2010.

The report says DPS consti-tuted an educational society,headed by Charanjit Kaur, andpurchased land on the basis ofthe society being an agricultur-

alist. The school in its reply tothe commission says it’s compe-tent to purchase the propertieson the basis of an agriculturalistcertificate given by the compe-tent government authority Jan23, 2010.

Sood observes that “the cer-tificate of agriculturalist soissued was in itself an illegalityas mere entry in the name of thehead of the institution, who is inpossession of the property sopurchased, does not make theowner in possession an agricul-turalist”.

The report says in view ofthe original ‘patta’ of 1937, theschool building so built couldnot have been erected nor theoriginal building could be soldin view of the terms of the origi-nal lease deed. Thus the occu-pation/sale of the entire premis-es is illegal and in violation ofSection 118 of the HimachalPradesh Tenancy and LandReforms Act of 1972. IANS

Elite Dalhousie school in trouble

War of words gets uglier

SHASHANK IS AN EXPERTIN RECYCLING ANDTRANSFORMING MAGAZINEPAGES, PEN REFILLS,CARDBOARDS INTO MODELSTHAT STORE SOLAR POWER,SOME OF WHICH ADORN THEPRINCIPAL’S ROOM.

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 201211India unveiled India‑ViewNATION AT A GLANCE

Pillay term extendedas UN rights chiefUNITED NATIONS: UN leaderBan Ki-moon said today he hasasked UN human rights chief NaviPillay to stay on for an extra twoyears. Pillay’s four-year term as headof the UN human rights monitoringoperation ends this year. Ban’s officesaid he had proposed that the UNGeneral Assembly to vote the exten-sion for the former S African judge.

5 killed in ambu-lance-truck collisionAMBALA: Five persons, includ-ing a day-old baby, were killedwhen the ambulance they weretravelling in collided head-on with atruck on Ambala-Hissar road in thewee hours today. They said theambulance was ferrying the serious-ly ill baby to PGIMER at Chandigarhwhen the mishap took place.

Bomb recoverednear ImphalIMPHAL: A powerful bombweighing 10 kg has been recoveredfrom Baruni hill area in Imphalalong with battery and remote-con-trolled device, official sources saidtoday. The bomb might have beenplanted by militants to attack secu-rity and police personnel passingthrough the area, the sources said.

6 injured as stormlashes Nalbari

West Bengal CM MamataBanerjee with actress JuhiChawla during their meetingin Kolkata on Monday. PTI

Actor Soumitra Chatterjeewas conferred with ‘LifetimeAchievement Award’ byauthor Buddhadeb Guha PTI

NALBARI (ASSAM): Six per-sons were injured when a severehailstorm lashed Ghograpar area inNalbari district of lower Assam latelast night. The storm damaged morethan a 100 houses, besides schoolbuildings in a number of villages,including Allia and Barajhol.

SHIMLA: An Australiantourist staying in HimachalPradesh’s Kullu ValleyMonday lodged a complaintthat she was raped by a fel-low tourist, an Indian fromChandigarh, police said.

The 22-year-old tourist ,who also met senior policeofficers, claimed that sheknew the accused and theyhad been in touch on socialnetworking site Facebook.

Superintendent ofpolice Ashok Kumar toldIANS the police have got a

medical examination of thegirl done but the report wasawaited.

“The investigations aregoing on and we haverecorded the statement ofthe victim and she claimsthat accused was aChandigarh resident, andhad fled after the incidentas both had also stayed in ahotel at Kasol, 42 km fromKullu town.

The foreigner had metthe accused Sami Sardanaonly two days back at a fes-

tival in Kasol.The tourist told the

police that she had a severeheadache and eventually gota room booked at a hotel.

She fell unconsciousafter having some medicinegiven by the accused. Nextmorning, she found herselfnaked in a hotel room andSardana had already fled.

Kumar said police teamshave been sent to differentplaces to search for theaccused.

IANS

Australian tourist alleges rape

DUBAI: Seven Indian nursesstranded in Saudi Arabia withoutproper documents have been res-cued and repatriated followingintervention by the IndianEmbassy.

The nurses were stranded intwo separate cases withoutpapers, an official working withthe labour section of the IndianEmbassy said.

“In the first case, four Indianfemale nurses — Ashley, Bindu,Aasha and Shely — came to theKingdom five years ago to work inAghsan Aliwy Hospital in Hafr Al-Batin,” M Aleem said.

“The sponsor neitherrenewed the residence permits(Iqamas) of the workers nor didhe allow the nurses to leave dur-ing vacations as per the provi-sions of the work agreements,” hesaid.

Once alerted, the IndianEmbassy established communi-cation with the hospital officialsand involved some local Indiancommunity leaders.

“But, all pleas fell on the deafears of the sponsor, which finallyled me to decide on a strongercourse of action,” Aleem wasquoted by Arab News as saying.

According to Aleem, he thentook the case to the Hafr Al-Batindeputy governor and the directorgeneral of health Mutlak Al-Khemyali, who extended full sup-port in rescuing the nurses.

Al-Khemyali raised the issuewith the directors of the PassportDepartment and Labour Office.He then called the Saudi sponsorto endorse the final exit visa andpay the air fares for the nurses.

“And thanks to the efforts ofthe Saudi officials, especially Al-Khemyali, that these nurses werefinally repatriated to India lastweek,” Aleem said.

In the other case, three nurs-es — Saramma Varghese,Subadhra Omana Kuttan andSree Latha Vasudevan Nair —were rescued. These nurses wereallegedly stranded after the newowner of a clinic closed down theorganisation without giving anyprior notice.

7 Indian nursesrescued in Saudi Arabia

One arrested forraping teenage girlNEW DELHI: A man was arrested for rap-ing a teenage girl from east Delhi and asearch is on for the main culprit, policesaid Monday.

The girl’s parents, residents of GokalPuri area, had reported her abduction onMarch 25. The girl returned home almost amonth later on April 23. According to thegirl, she was abducted by her cousin,Shoaib, who took her to a friend, Rashid’splace, where the two raped her repeatedly,a police official said. “Following the girl’sstory, we nabbed Rashid on Friday,” headded. The main accused, Shoaib, howev-er, is absconding and a search is on. PTI

Air India aircraft are parked near the Mumbai International Airport on Monday . PTI

10 AI flights cancelled,pilots refuse to workMUMBAI: As the stir by over200 Air India pilots entered theeighth day today leading to can-cellation of 10 internationalflights, the government said theDGCA will take action againstthose who have falsely reportedsick and not joined work.

Air India cancelled around10 international flights fromDelhi and Mumbai this morn-ing. “We have, as part of ourcontingency plan, operatedDelhi-Toronto, Delhi-New Yorkroutes, and hope to operatemore flights tonight,” an AirIndia spokesperson said.

With a medical summaryissued by the aviation ministrystating that most of the AI pilots,who called in sick, were neitherfound at home by doctors sentby the airline nor reported todoctors empanelled by the carri-er, civil aviation minister AjitSingh said the DirectorateGeneral of Civil Aviation (DGCA)will take action against them.

“If they have reported sick

but were found fit or not foundat their houses as reported in theaviation ministry’s medicalsummary, then the DGCA willtake necessary action againstthem,” Singh told reporters.

According to the medicalsummary, about 48 out of the 53Delhi-based pilots who reportedsick were not found at home.Their residences were found

locked and their mobilesunreachable.

Nine out of 18 outstationpilots, who were staying at HotelHyatt, complained of bad stom-ach and backache but doctorsfound them medically fit.

Of the 53 homes visited bydoctors, 12 were found locked.When doors were opened, themedical teams were givenunclear information.

The minister said the pilotshave the right to go on strike, asemployees may have somegrievances. “They should havediscussed with us, why havethey chosen to go on a strikeduring the peak vacation season.”

Meanwhile, seven Air Indiaunions in a letter to Singh havesought an end to the standoffbetween pilots and the manage-ment. Seeking Singh’s interven-tion, the AI unions of engineers,cabin crew, commercial staff,ground staff have blamed themerger for the ongoing crises.

DISAPPOINTED OVER THEMANAGEMENT’S ATTITUDE,SOME 100 ODD PILOTSHAVE ALREADY JOIN THEAGITATION AND THE GUILDEXPECTS THE NUMBER TOSWELL TO 250-300 BYTOMORROW, THEY HADSAID, INDICATING THEFLIGHTS OPERATIONS COULDBE HIT SEVERELY.

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 201212Around the World Beyond Borders

A South Korean boy gets his head shaved during a “ChildrenBecoming Buddhist monks” ceremony in Seoul. 9 children willstay at the temple to learn about Buddhism for 20 days ahead ofcelebrations for Buddha’s birthday on May 28 this year.

OUCH, IT DOESN’T HURT THOUGH

SEOUL: Attacks on basic free-doms are nothing new on theKorean peninsula. Material con-sidered a threat to state security isroutinely deleted, and citizenswho openly criticize the govern-ment find themselves ostracized,and sometimes imprisoned.

For once, though, the discus-sion does not center on NorthKorea, where the brutal quashingof dissent is the stock in trade ofthe Pyongyang regime. This time,the focal point is on free anddemocratic South Korea, wherethe government stands accusedof using the law to silence dis-senters 25 years after the countryemerged from decades of militarydictatorship.

Park Jeong Keun apparentlyhad no idea anything was amisswhen he entertained his Twitterfollowers with satiricalsideswipes at North Korea. Butthe humorous intent behind hisretweets of self-evidently ludi-crous missives from the regime’sown Twitter account was lost onthe authorities in the South.

The 23-year-old photogra-pher, who was indicted inFebruary, now faces a possibleprison sentence after beingcharged with “praising and sup-porting an enemy of the state”under a law introduced morethan six decades ago to protectthe new South Korea from com-munist infiltration.

“This is not a national securi-ty case; It’s a sad case of the South

Korean authorities’ complete fail-ure to understand sarcasm,” SamZarifi, Asia-Pacific director ofAmnesty International, said afterPark’s arrest earlier this year.

“Imprisoning anyone forpeaceful expression of their opin-ions violates international lawbut in this case, the chargesagainst Park are simply ludicrousand should be dropped immedi-ately.”

Park, a member of the KoreanSocialist Party, was chargedunder the National Security Law,introduced when South Koreawas founded in 1948 to protectthe fledgling state against espi-onage and insurrection fromgroups sympathetic to the coun-try’s communist neighbour.

The law is still frequently

used to investigate those who“praise, disseminate or cooper-ate with anti-state groups,” but,critics say, it is also being enlistedin the biggest official assault onfree speech since South Koreabecame a democracy in 1987.

South Korea’s conservativepresident, Lee Myung Bak,defended the law, which he saidwas needed to address the threatfrom North Korean spies andsympathizers. “If you considerthat fact, and if you are someoneliving in such a country everyday, then you will understand theneed to have such laws that willallow us to maintain our way oflife,” he said in an interview withNational Public Radio.

But Park Jeong Keun’s case istypical of how easily the law can

be abused, says Amnesty’s Park.“The point here is not whetherthe charges stand up, but howthe government is using the lawto control public discourse andmake people think twice beforeexpressing an opinion. It’s creat-ing a climate of fear.

“Many people don’t evenknow the law still exists until theyare charged with something. Inthe past it applied only to pro-North Korean groups, but nowindividuals are being targeted.”

Early attempts to abolish thelaw failed due to anti-NorthKorean sentiment fomented bythe 1950-53 Korean War, andagain in 2007, when the threatfrom the North’s missile andnuclear programs was deemedserious enough to keep it on thestatute books.

The number of cases hasrisen dramatically under the Leeadministration. In 2007, the yearhe became president, policeinterrogated 39 people on suspi-cion of violating the nationalsecurity law; in 2010 the numberhad risen to 151.

Legal actions against peoplewho post “pro-North Korean”material on line have soared,from just five in 2008 to 82 in2010, according to the govern-ment. That has coincided with adramatic rise in the number ofdeletions of online postsdeemed to be supportive of thePyongyang regime.

GLOBALPOST

Taiwan’s innocent killersBuddhists accidentally killing millions of animals during “mercy releases”

Taiwanese Buddhists trying to improve theirkarma are being accused of killing tens of mil-lions of animals during so-called “mercy

releases”.AFP reports that the problem is so widespread

that Taiwan’s government is now planning to banthe practice.

An official from the government’s Council ofAgriculture, Lin Kuo-chang, reportedly told thenews agency that some groups had accepted theban, but negotiations are ongoing.

About 200 million animals are released eachyear, with most dying from a lack of food or naturalhabitat. The Humane Society International saysthat the animals can “sustain injuries from nets orsnares, suffocate or starve in transit, or becomeeasy prey on release”. It adds that once released“they can spread disease, compete for food and ter-ritory, or threaten gene pools by mating with nativespecies.”

The issue has been highlighted by the Envir -onment and Animal Society of Taiwan, which hasraised the issue in the past, according to Asiamag.

The Commissioner of Miaoli County in westernTaiwan Liu Cheng-hung has been accused of “set-ting a bad example” by “taking the lead in the

destruction of a river habitat”, says the Taipei Times.Lui oversaw the release of up to 14,000 bighead

carp and grass carp spawn into a local creek as partof efforts to maintain river ecosystems and diversifythe fishery business.

However academics and environmental protec-tion groups have complained that the fish are notindigenous to the area, arguing that “people shouldnot release foreign fish into rivers” because it couldaffect the well-being of other fish.

GLOBALPOST

New Jersey tattoo artistDa ve Hurban just coul -

d n’t stand the thought of be -ing away from his music, sohe implanted four magnetsinto his arm to hold his iPodNano in place without astrap.

To at t ach the iPod to hisskin, Hurban took the end ofthe magnets and attachedthem to the end of the iPod,which clicked in place withthe ma gnets implanted intohis skin.

Hurban said, getting thefour magnets under his skinthat hold the iPod in placewas a fairly typical processin the body piercing world.“Those magnets are actual-ly called micro-dermal anc -hors,” Hurban told DigitalTrends, “and in body pierc-ing they are very common.The tops are actually just 5millimeter magnetic tops.”

Hurban documentedhis entire piercing experi-ence as part of his iDermalproject.

Hurban said the mag-nets are so strong that theNano actually stays in placewhile he is jogging.

GLOBALPOST

Humanmagneto

AFP

S KOREA: WHERE SARCASMCAN GET YOU INTO JAIL

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 201213Around the World Beyond Borders

GLOBE AT A GLANCERussian charged withselling missile secretsMOSCOW: An employee at a Russiandefence firm has been accused of passingsecrets on the Bulava intercontinental mis-sile to a foreign intelligence service. Thesecrets concern the missile’s guidance andcontrol system, the Kommersant dailyreported citing a law enforcement source.“There is conclusive evidence of his guilt,"the source said. The details of the casehave not been disclosed.

China accuses DalaiLama of deceit BEIJING: China has accused the DalaiLama of “deceiving the world” after Tibet’sexiled spiritual leader said he was warnedof a plot by Chinese agents to assassinatehim. He made the allegation in an inter-view with Sunday Telegraph, saying he hadbeen told that agents were planning topoison him using Tibetan women posing asdevotees seeking his blessing.

11 Pak peacekeepersinjured in DR Congo BUKAVU: Angry villagers surrounded aUN peacekeeping base in easternDemocratic Republic of Congo on Mondayand opened fire and hurled stones injuringat least 11 Pakistani peacekeepers, officialssaid. The villagers had apparently beenangry because they were not protectedagainst attacks by militias. But UN SecurityCouncil strongly condemned the attack.

Pak leaders to discussNato supplies blockade

US President Barack Obama,accompanied by Barnard CollegePresident Debora Spar acknowledgeapplause at Barnard College.

Soyuz spacecraft withInternational Space Stationastronauts aboard blasts off fromBaikonur cosmodrome on Tuesday.

ISLAMABAD: Top Pakistani leaderswill on Tuesday discuss ending a blockadeof foreign military supply routes intoAfghanistan and repairing US relations,signalling a rapprochement ahead of aNATO summit. Islamabad shut its Afghanborder to NATO supplies after US airstrikes killed 24 soldiers in November.

Time for real businessPARIS: Socialist FrancoisHollande was to be sworn in asFrance’s president on Tuesdaybefore naming a prime ministerand dashing to Germany to bat-tle with Berlin over how to tack-le Europe’s debt crisis.

Nine days after he defeatedright-winger Nicolas Sarkozy ina fierce campaign, Hollande, 57,was to be inaugurated at theElysee Palace and only hourslater head to Germany for hisfirst foreign visit as president.

He was also set to make themuch-anticipated announce-ment of who will lead his gov-ernment as prime minister, withJean-Marc Ayrault, the head ofthe Socialists’ parliamentarybloc, tipped as frontrunner.

Hollande is expected to besworn in shortly after meetingSarkozy at the Elysee at around10am (0800 GMT).

The ceremony itself will berelatively simple — with noother heads of state invited —and Hollande will then take anopen-topped ride in a Citroenup the Champs Elysees to theArc de Triomphe, waving to thecrowd. In separate ceremonies,he will then pay tribute to 19th-century educational reformer

Jules Ferry — father of France’sfree, secular education system.

At 1400 GMT Hollande willfly to Berlin, where he faces anuncertain reception fromChancellor Angela Merkel, aSarkozy ally and the main back-er of the European Union’s fiscalausterity drive.

Hollande has vowed to refo-cus European economic policyon growth by re-opening talkson a fiscal pact agreed in March

that aims to control Europeandebt by enshrining greater bud-get discipline.

The deal was Merkel’s brain-child and she has repeatedlyinsisted since Hollande’s elec-tion that the pact, signed by 25of the 27 EU countries andalready ratified in some, is notopen to renegotiation.

But observers say there isroom for compromise, withHollande likely to agree to addi-

tional stimulus measures with-out a rewrite of the pact.

And with political paralysisin Greece raising the spectre ofthe country being forced fromthe eurozone, the heads ofEurope’s two largest economieswill be keen to reassure worriedmarkets they can work together.

Before he heads to Berlin,Hollande’s first order of businesswill be to nominate a primeminister, who will be tasked withforming a government before afirst cabinet session likely onThursday.

The Socialists have beencareful to let nothing slip, butAyrault, a 62-year-old longtimeHollande ally, is considered firstin line for the job.

Other contenders includeSocialist Party leader and for-mer labour minister MartineAubry, Hollande’s communica-tions director during the cam-paign, Manuel Valls, and hiscampaign and transition chiefPierre Moscovici. Once the cab-inet is named, the focus willmove to the So cialists’ campaignto win a parliamentary majorityin June’s le gislative elections — akey test for the party afterHollande’s win. AFP

Hollande to swear in as president and dash to Berlin for negotiations

NEW YORK: UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon suf-fered a fracture in his lefthand while playing in the UNdiplomats’ spring soccertournament and now has hisarm in a sling, UN spokesmanMartin Nesirky said.

The 67-year-old Ban “hasto wear a cast for the next sixweeks", Xinhua quoted Nes ir -ky as saying at a daily newsbriefing. “He’s otherwiseabsolutely fine and in greatspirits," the spokesman said.

The secretary-general fellto the ground on Saturday inthe tournament at the BelAire Farm estate in New York.He was back in office at theUN Headquarters onMonday.

“Sport has become aworld language, a commondenominator that breaksdown all the walls, all the bar-riers," Ban said at the 2ndInternational Forum onSport, Peace and Deve -lopment in Geneva in Maylast year. “It is a worldwideindustry whose practices canhave widespread impact.Most of all, it is a powerfultool for progress and fordevelopment,” he said. AFP

GENEVA: The spiralling glob-al population and over-con-sumption are threatening thefuture health of the planet,conservation group WWFwarned on Tuesday.

The demand on naturalresources has become unsus-tainable and is putting “tremen-dous” pressure on the planet’sbiodiversity, the body said.

In its latest survey of theEarth’s health, WWF namedQatar as the country with thelargest ecological footprint, fol-lowed by its Middle Easternneighbours Kuwait and theUnited Arab Emirates.

Denmark and the UnitedStates made up the remainingtop five, calculated by compar-ing the renewable resourcesconsumed against the earth’sregenerative capacity.

The Living Planet Reportfound that high-income coun-tries have an ecological foot-print on average five times thatof low-income ones.

Across the globe the foot-print has doubled since 1966.

“We are living as if we havean extra planet at our dispos-al,” said Jim Leape, WWF Inte -rnational director general.

“We are using 50 per centmo re resources that the Earth

can sustainably produce andunless we change course, thatnumber will grow fast — by2030 even two planets will notbe enough.”

The survey, compiled everytwo years, reported an average30 percent decrease in biodi-versity since 1970, rising to 60per cent in the hardest-hittropical regions.

The decline has been mostrapid in lower income coun-tries, “demonstrating how thepoorest and most vulnerablenations are subsidising thelifestyles of wealthier coun-

tries,” said WWF. Globally,around 13 million hectares offorest were lost each yearbetween 2000 and 2010.

The report comes ahead ofJune’s Rio+20 gathering, thefourth major summit on sus-tainable development since1972. French President-electFrancois Hollande have con-firmed they will be among 100global leaders at the summitseeking to outline a pathtowards an economy that canbalance economic growth,poverty eradication and pro-tection of the environment.

KlutzyMoon WWF’s survey spells trouble

The giant panda is one of the endangered species. Accordingto estimates only 1,590 are living in the wild.

Greece eyesTechnocrat govtATHENS: Greece will tryagain today to form a govern-ment, aiming for a technocratsolution to resolve a crisiswhich risks forcing it into newelections and out of the euro-zone.

Leaders from all politicalparties, except the far right,which won seats in inconclu-sive polls on May 6 will meetat 1100 GMT today in a last-gasp effort to get the country“out of a dead end," accordingto Socialist Pasok party headEvangelos Venizelos.

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 201214Fair, free and forthrightComment

A human gestureApropos Mass marriages are a communityaffair in your paper dated May 14, I have afew observations of my own to add. Myfamily came from a small town toHyderabad one year ago, because it was dif-

ficult to make twoends meet in ourhometown. We hadheard of stories of bigopportunities in thishappening city. Duringmy stay here, I havehappened to attendone wedding of afriend’s friend. Believe

me, the kind of money spent on marriageshere borders on vulgarity. Instead of spend-ing so much money on just one couple’swedding, it makes so much more humanitysense to conduct weddings of many peoplesimultaneously... in the same amount.

Shyamshiva ReddyKrishna Nagar

Patrolling by policeWhat else can one expect from the police?Instead of being vigilant and apprehendingcriminals who brazenly rob automatic teller

machines, the policeare asking the bankmanagement to bemore careful, ensurethe act is recorded onvideo cameras and soon. What are thepolicemen doing?They have been pro-vided motorcycles,

jeeps and personnel to monitor wrongdoings in the city. But they seem to beeverywhere else but where crime is takingplace. And their petrol consumption andvehicle maintenance is spiralling upwards.Which part of the city are they patrolling?

Mohammed Riyaz IsmailSainikpuri

Will plans become real?Mayor Mohd Majid Hussain’s plans for thecity are welcome. To create employmentopportunities is a fantastic means ofprogress. Unemployment is such a bane thatit leaves traces of its ill-effects all around.Not being able to earn a descent livingdrives many youth into bad ways. There isless likelihood of drifting for people if theyare kept engaged. Better roads in the OldCity sounds like a dream. Let’s hope that theenthusiasm our young mayor is showingconverts into reality.

Smiti RaoSomajiguda

Plan progress wellWhile it cannot be denied that we cannotlive stuck in the history, unplanned growth isnot to be accepted either. A little bit of con-cern and thought in planning goes a longway in ensuring that a balance between her-itage and development is struck.

QutubMehidipatnam

Talk back

Editorials

We invite you to write to uscomments, suggestions, viewpoint or

just about anything tofeedback@postnoon.com or

#1246, Level 3, Jubilee Casa, Road No 62,Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad – 500 033

or even by way of a call on 4067 2222.

Readers’views

MESSIAH OF THE POORis drowned in worldly pleasures

There is no end to maya that unveils in erstwhile Mayaland ie Uttar Pradesh. Closeon the heels of the `86 crore she lavished on the renovation of her abode, comesnews of a `60-crore scam of elephant statues — all this while masquerading as

the messiah of the poor. The episode makes one wonder which way democracy is goingand where this is leading us to. We are happy with the developments in the Middle-

East where authoritarian regimes which plunder the populations and live in luxury arebeing deposed by people but there is little relief from the anarchy that is happening in

our backyard. The tendency of political leaders to forget the purpose of them beingelected to ‘represent’ people has become more pronounced as they indulge themselves

in the luxuries of power-wealth combinations. The aam admi who is being taken for aride by alliance after alliance and parties of all hues have little respite from the press-ing problems to survive in the world’s largest democracy. Three cheers to the system.

WHY WE LOVE...Virat Kohli

This guy seems to possess itall that it takes to being awinner — talent, aggres-

sion and composure. A rightfulblend of these only adds to theflavour. It takes a lot of charac-ter for someone to control anugly situation on the playfield,especially when you are preoc-cupied with the pangs ofdefeat. Character and maturity...at 23!

The guiding motto of a government isprotecting the weak from thestrong; the weak both in social andeconomic spheres. I am sure 9 outof 10 MPs and ministers do not

know this driving dictum.Let us just take a cursory glance at the way

our government has ‘protected’ the weak inthe past 60 years. Election: The pivotal principle of democraticrule is now taken far away from the weak. Nocommon man, even fairly rich, can contest amunicipal election, forget the Parliamentaryelection. The running cost of fighting amunicipal election, experience shows, issomewhere between `1 crore and `3 crore. Asfor the Assembly or Parliamentary election, itis your guess. Education: This fundamental right of everycitizen is beyond an honest earner. While pri-mary education in government schools canbe afforded, higher education is a mirage. Atechnical degree costs Rs.6 lakh upwards. Amedical education, well, let us skip it or wewill have apoplexy.Health: The reason for an increasing numberof believers in the world is because of theloss of faith in humanity. If you fall seriouslysick, God alone can help, for no hospitalisa-tion is within the means of an ordinary citi-zen. Even the government hospitals have nodrugs and you have to buy from outside.After suffering all the ignominy of queuingup for hours, what you get is nothing tospeak of. If, by ill-luck, you are compelled toget admitted to a private hospital, consideryourself lucky if you escape without anotherinfection and with your innerwear on, for therest of the clothes go along with your self-respect and money.Shelter: Owning a home is a robber’s fantasy.The financiers and banks would take the joyout of your home for you can never sleep inpiece with the Shylocks always at the door. Nosalaried person or ordinary man can dream ofowning a decent home. The cost runs intolakhs of rupees. The other day when I asked

the price of a 3-bedroom apartment, thesalesman coolly replied, “Only 1.10C sir.” And,the mobile fell from my hand.Justice: On paper, justice is free and it costslittle to seek justice. Try that, and tell me thetale. Anyone who has had the misfortune tofight a case, due mainly to government folly,through the lower court to the Supreme Courtwill advise even his enemies against it. By thetime you are through with the courts, you arenot only pauper but also a highly disillu-sioned man. The robed helping hands, thebabus in the system, the endless adjourn-ments will take the wind out of you.Dal and roti: God, you have reached this level!In a Bollywood movie of the ‘seventies there isa meaningful popular number that says, Dalroti khao prabhu ke gun gao (Be happy withdal rotti and sing the paeans of the Lord), butyou know by now that dal and roti, the hum-ble food of common man, is one of the mostexpensive foods on a hotel menu.

Need we go any further? Not necessary. Somuch for the government’s “protection of theweak from the strong” after 60 years ofIndependence.

Solution: Discounting armed struggle, themost effective way to make any change is tovote judiciously; not by caste, creed, faith orother consideration, but for innate good of aparty and its candidate. Wait, I know you sayall are bad, but let us look around for relative-ly good, if not real good ones.Tailend: Paying money, booze and sari forvote is passé; buying a colour TV, fridge orlaptop is now in the realm of the thugs. Butnow politicians know that voters havebecome crafty. A communist leader of Keralain the ‘90s advised his flocks to accept whatever anybody offered, for money orgoods are useful, much like Gandhi kept thepaper-pin and threw away the questionnairepresented to him by a foreign correspon-dent. “But,” he told them, “You know who tovote for.”

That is probably a sound advice. Becausethe ill-gotten wealth of the politically ambi-tious needs to be redistributed, and what bet-ter way than this to achieve it?

The writer works for Postnoon.

Live by your wits, you poor chump!Hard TalkPK Surendran

HR speaksDeepak

Diplomacyalways wins

Workplace politics is aharsh reality in India.When you take up a

new role at a well-establishedorganisation, the first fewdays seem fine. The smiles oneveryone’s faces deceive youinto believing that all is well.But a few days later, thecracks appear and a fewmonths into it, you find your-self entangled in a labyrinthof power games. You end uptaking sides and become apart of the vicious system. Butthat’s a very unhealthy posi-tion to be in. Although thereis no cure for it, one thing cankeep you clean and distinctlyrespectable — diplomacy.

Diplomacy is the art ofsaying no and making itsound like yes. To maintain aclean image, sound positive.Avoid speaking in the nega-tive. If you are unhappy aboutanything, it is best to keep itto yourself rather thanindulge in gossip. Anotherimportant aspect is managingyour anger. Never ever sendan email or request for ameeting when you are angry.Sometimes, your impulsiveangry responses may damagethings permanently. Whenangry, take a walk around theoffice, grab a coffee or simplyread something interestingonline. If you have a problemwith someone or something,never disclose it in public.Speak to your boss behindclosed doors and get it solved.

You must also be aware ofpeople who sugarcoat every-thing they say and praise youunconditionally. These areusually the ones that can putyou down when the timecomes. The trick is to respondselectively to their commentsand keep them at a safe dis-tance.

If you are in a role thatrequires interaction withmany other departments, it isall the more important for youto maintain diplomacybecause you end up listeningto stories from all the sidesand each group treats you as amember. In such cases, nevertake sides. Employ only yourears and smile. By doing soyou are most likely to gain areputation of being someonewho doesn’t interfere withanyone’s affairs. That is whatmakes you different. All said,at the end of the day, thediplomat is the winner.

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 201215At the workplace

Bhavneet Singhfeedback@postnoon.com

Internships for students arelike insights into the future.They expect to get a sneak-peek into their future. It’s atime when one gets to

decide whether one wants totake a particular career. And ifthe internship is a paid one thenthere is nothing like it. Oftenstudents can’t wait to get to startearning, but, is the grass asgreen as it looks? Or is it just anillusion?

We spoke to a few internsfrom various fields and this iswhat they had to say.“I got whatever I wanted!” saysVaishnavi Gopalakrishnan, a PRintern. “PR is a field where aca-demics cannot teach you much.Field exposure is the only waythat we cangain someknowledgeand under-standing. Andluckily, myinternship isgiving meeverything Iwant,” sheadds.

Krishitha Gunti, an intern atan event management companyhas a different story to tell. “Itcertainly is not what I hadexpected it to be. When I joinedas an intern, I was expected to

assist people on how to organisean event. But two weeks into it,all I’ve done is picked up papers,and got coffee for my seniors.Now, it’s justbecome a cer-tificate thingfor me ratherthan an expe-rience,” shesays.

Krishitha’sstatementdoes sum upwhat otherinterns are facing. However,Amrit Kosaraju, a journalismintern says,“It’s not how Iimagined it tobe. That does-n’t mean it’snot good. Icame hereexpecting todo a lot ofinterviews andreports, but Irealised it’stoo early for me.I do small reports and I’m happywith it. I am looking forward tomake the best of this opportunity.”

Bhavdeep Singh, an internwith an insurance companyhas similar views. “It’s not aseasy as it looks. It takes a toll onyour health. The work pressureis immense. And it’s toughto digest that I am still an

intern,” saysBhavdeep.

“Thefuture some-how wouldbe better asI would bepaid for mywork unlikenow,” he sayshopefully.

For Ayushi Khandelwal, herinternship will help her decide ifshe wants to make her career inphotography. “I’m using this asan opportunity to decide if Ihave to take up photography inthe future or not,” she says. “Iam learning more about thisfield by jumping into it. If it suitsme, then I willtake it up inthe futureotherwise, theworld is full ofcareeroptions,”Ayushi adds.

ForAnjana, a lawintern, herinternship was filled with a lot ofups and downs. She says, “Iinterned with various law firms.Being new to this field, I got tolearn a lot. At the beginning youremain clueless about what’sgoing around you, I had to do alot of homework to understandwhat’s going on, let alone, work-ing for them. Those were times

when I had to do clerical taskslike taking printouts of docu-ments, arrange them in chrono-logical order, etc. But then again,I got to learn the filing proce-dures needed for work. Thingsgot simpler once I was famil-iarised with the procedures. Nomore bringing coffee. In fact,then it was like a privilegedinternship, when you get servedcoffee twice a day, and get to sitin an air-con-ditioned room.I’m quitehappy with allmy experi-ences. It getsbad only whenI have to stayfor long hoursdoing noth-ing.”

For all graduating students,internships is a great learningexperience. It helps you getacquainted with the career ofyour choice. Though they arenot paid for it, they do get achance to learn from the best inthe business which is totallyworth it. Like everything, it hasits crests and troughs, but at theend of the day, the interns havenothing to lose. It’s an experi-ence which helps them gain alot, and that itself is the essenceof internship.

With inputs from SnehaMashetty and Sameena Kenaz

Internships are usually undertaken inorder to get credits or experience in aparticular course. What do studentsexpect out of an internship? We find out

Karamungikar

Vaishnavi

Amrit

Krishitha

Bhavdeep

Ayushi

Anjana

A JOB TO DO

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 201218Holistic view of mind, body and soulH‑Factor

You hit the gym with all thevigour and determinationpossible, hoping to be

several kilos lighter in a coupleof months. But four monthsdown the line and severalexhausting work outs lateryou’re not as light as you’dexpected to be. Disappointed?Discouraged? Don’t be. Whileexercise is important to stay fitand stave off extra kilos, it is

also important to supplementthis regime with a healthy diet.

We’re not suggesting thatyou survive on just fruits or rawvegetables. What we’re saying issmarten up. Know what foodshelp you shed the flab andinclude them in your everydaydiet while kicking out some of

the fattening stuff. And if you’re good and stick

to your healthy diet then treatyourself to your favourite foodsonce in a while (say once in aweek or fortnight). Here are fewfoods you might want to loadup on, simply because they’lldo wonders for that waistline.

BeansBeans for quite some time now

have been considered the poorman’s meat. Rich in proteins andwhole host of nutrients, this won-der food also aids weight loss. Onecup of cooked beans provides a 12grams of fibre and this providesyou with close to one-half the fibreyou require daily. When eaten,beans make you feel fuller longer.Also you’ve probably never heardof cholecystokinin, but it’s one ofyour best weight-loss pals. Thisdigestive hormone is a naturalappetite suppressant. There’s alsoevidence that beans keep bloodsugar on an even keel, so you canstave off hunger longer. High-fiberbeans can lower your cholesterol.So grab those bags of black beans,kidney beans and lima beans.

Salad

If there’s a delicious spread before you,overeating is inevitable — unless of

course you have incredible self control.What you could do instead is eat a largebowl of salad before your meal (keep offthe creamy dressing though). The salad,apart from being healthy and nutritiouswill also fill you up, resulting in you eatingless. According to a study published in theJournal of the American DieteticAssociation found that people who ateone salad a day with dressing had higherlevels of vitamins C and E, folic acid,lycopene, and carotenoids-all diseasefighters-than those who didn’t add saladto their daily menu. We say, go experi-ment with different veggies and dressings.

ChilliesAs Indians we have a palate for

spicy food. But biting into thatchilly does more than just spice upyour dish — it can help you loseweight too. This is because capsaicin,the chemical that gives chillies andchilli-based spices their characteristicpungency, stimulates a natural pro-cess whereby some of the food weeat is converted immediately to heat.This is good news for weight watch-ers, because this means we burn upcalories faster and don’t store them.

Eggs

Eating a couple of eggs for breakfastmight actually work wonders for your

weight loss regime. No longer thought tobe a cholesterol-booster, eggs are a con-centrated form of animal protein withoutthe added fat that comes with meat.Studies have shown that when people eatan egg every morning they lose twice asmuch weight than those who don’t. Eggsare packed with a variety of nutrientsincluding protein, zinc, iron and vitaminsA, D, E and B12, but contain just 85 calo-ries each. But do avoid fried eggs.

Oats

If you’re the kind who fights hun -ger pangs a couple of hours after

breakfast you should try switchingto oats. Oats are a whole grain andmake you feel full. Not only that,they’re also high in soluble fibre, sothey cut cholesterol and blood fat.Besides, it takes longer for thebody to digest oats, so they don’traise your blood sugar and theykeep you feeling filled up well intothe late morning. So go ahead andexperiment. Be it an oatmeal por-ridge, muffin, cookies or simpleoatmeal cereal, try making theswitch. You’ll see what we mean.

Apples

The adage an apple a day keeps thedoctor away could be modified to an

apple before a meal keeps the kilos away.Studies have shown that eating an apple30 minutes before a meal cuts the caloriesof the meal. Why? The fibre in the applemakes you feel full, so you eat less. Recentresearch suggests eating apples has otherbenefits, too; the antioxidants in applesprevent metabolic syndrome, the combina-tion of high cholesterol, high blood pres-sure, and prediabetes that tends toaccompany thickening around the waist.Also, apples are high in pectin, whichbinds with water and limits the amount offat your cells can absorb.

Ranjani Rajendraranjani.r@postnoon.com

EAT SMART TO LOSE WEIGHT

SYDNEY: Treating eyes with gentleinfrared light can help prevent dam-age caused by subsequent exposureto bright light, says a study.

A breakthrough by The VisionCentre at the Australian NationalUniversity can protect the vision ofpeople exposed to bright sunlight orartificial lights, namely constructionworkers, sportspeople, fishermen,farmers, welders, actors, entertain-ers and others.

Krisztina Valter and doctoralresearcher Rizalyn Albarracin at TheVision Centre have shown that pre-treatment with near infrared light(NIR) prevents a build-up of scartissue in the retina causing subse-quent harm to sight, the journalPhotochemistry and Photobiologyreported.

“There’s a group of cells thatlook after our vision and workbehind the scenes called Mullercells,” said Albarracin. “They act toprotect the retina by clearing toxinsand inducing healing wheneverthere is injury to the vision cells.”

“However, their protection is adouble-edge sword for the eyes.When the retina comes underextreme stress, as when it is exposedto intensely bright light and loses alarge number of vision cells, theMuller cells can over-react by multi-plying and forming scar tissuebehind the retina,” she said, accord-ing to a university statement.

“When this occurs, two thingshappen: first, the vision cells closeto where the scar tissue forms willstop working. Secondly, the scar tis-sue blocks the blood supply to theouter retina, so that other visioncells are starved of oxygen, glucoseand other nutrients vital to theirsurvival,” said Albarracin.

“As a result more vision cells die,which in turn provokes Muller cellsto work even harder, forming morescar tissues and setting up a viciouscycle,” added Albarracin.

“We found that the treatmentwith mild NIR successfully inhibitsthe Muller cells from multiplyingand forming scar tissue,” said teamleader Valter.

Researchers used an array ofsmall LEDs (light emitting diodes)that have been tuned to producenear infrared light at a specificwavelength — 670 nanometres.

IANS

Infraredlight stopseye damage

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 201219Holistic view of mind, body and soulH‑Factor

Appendicitis is basically an inflammation of the appendixdue to an infection. The appendix is an extension of the

large bowel which helps break down vegetable matter. Theappendix is said to not play a major role in the same as after itis removed a person can still live a healthy normal life.Although appendicitis is said to occur mostly in children, adultsmay also suffer from the same. A person suffering from appen-dicitis may display symptoms such as pain in the centre of theabdomen, vomiting, diarrhoea and fever. If the infection is seri-ous than surgery to remove the appendix is advised else theymay be given certain antibiotics and IV fluids. The child recov-ers within a few days of the surgery. If a child shows symptomsof appendicitis then it is advised that the child should not befed anything and you should call your doctor immediately.

HOUSECALL

Have some symptoms been botheringyou since the last few days? Isabel

healthcare launched the health app calledIsabel to prevent misdiagnosis. The mobileapp provides the user with possible diag-nosis and its concerned treatment or med-ications based on the symptoms providedby the user. The application meant for useby healthcare professionals only helpsprovide these professionals with a possible list of diagnosis. Theapplication which helps provide a more specific diagnosis thro -ugh age, gender and travel history filters also provides the userto a large database of the symptoms and their treatment. Theapplication can be downloaded free of cost.

APP-LY YOURSELF

We have always been told thatfood with anti-oxidants are

good for us as these anti-oxidantshelp protect the cells in our bodyagainst free radicals that can dam-age them and cause cancer, heartdisease and other ailments.According to a study, the brighter thecolour of the produce, the better its antioxidant content is forus. Various bright coloured berries such as blueberries, straw-berries, red cabbage, and eggplant are some of the few foodswith good antioxidant content. In a study, it was found thatthese produce not only stopped tumours from growing, butalso killed about 20% of tumour cells.

DID YOU KNOW?Appendicitis Isabel Bright is healthy

AWAKE DURING SURGERY?BLAME YOUR GENES: STUDYFreya Petersen

Some patients are morelikely to remain consciousduring operations becauseof a genetic resistance to

anaesthesia, according to a NewZealand expert.

Jamie Sleigh of AucklandUniversity has embarked on theworld’s first study examining thegenes of people who reportedawareness during anaesthesia,reported the AustralianAssociated Press.

Sleigh told the Australian andNew Zealand College ofAnesthetists (ANZCA) conferencein Perth that about one in 1,000patients recall conversations andsounds from the operating the-ater while under anesthetic.

“You do get some people whoremember stuff during opera-tions and apparently receivedpretty generous amounts ofanesthetic,” he said accord-ing to an AAP reported.

“Normally, anaes-thesia is an incredi-bly effective treat-ment. That’s whyyou get the feelingthere is somethingin the genetic waythat person hasbeen built.”

The suspicionthat this resistancecould be geneticallybased is supported byreports of a family historyof awareness during anaes-thesia.

The study, a collaborationbetween the University ofAuckland, Waikato Hospital andMelbourne’s Royal Children’sHospital, aims to recruit about100 people who have reportedawareness during anaesthesia.

It would examine their DNAfor genes believed to interactwith the drugs.

Separately, a New Zealand

psychiatrist told the conferencethat hypnosis could be morewidely used for pain relief,including in major surgery, forpeople who had adverse reac-tions to anaesthesia.

Auckland regional pain ser-vice pain specialist Bob Large,cited by Australia’s ABC , saidthat in some parts of the world,hypnosis had been used prior tomajor surgery.

He said that some peoplecould even have surgery underhypnosis. “Some people arecapable of very, very impressiveanaesthesia and analgesia withhypnosis,” he said.

“There are case reports of

people having major surgeryunder hypnosis going way back.”

Large said that being hypno-tised before an operation hadadvantages as opposed to using

gas or a needle.“I think in the first instance it

helps them feel less apprehen-sive about the process,” he said.

“And within the procedureitself it doesn’t negate the possi-bility of using chemical anaes-thesia, but it reduces the dosagesthat are required and that’s prettyuseful as well.

“Women who use hypnosisfor childbirth are able to bemuch more comfortable throughthe whole process, they have agood time, the baby comes outless sedated because you’ve notused as much morphine or otheranalgesia along the way.”

GLOBAL POST

LONDON: Some 360,000 tonnesof milk poured down kitchen sinksin Britain creates a carbon foot-print equivalent to exhaust emis-sions of 20,000 cars annually, astudy says.

The study conducted at theUniversity of Edinburgh, UK, iden-tifies ways that consumers couldalso help curb greenhouse gasemissions — by reducing theamount of food they buy, serveand waste. They also suggest thefood industry could reduce emis-sions by seeking more efficientways to use fertilisers.

For instance, halving theamount of chicken consumed inthe UK and other developed coun-tries to levels eaten in Japan couldcut greenhouse gas emissionsequivalent to taking 10 millioncars off the road, the journalNature Climate Change reports.

“Eating less meat and wastingless food can play a big part inhelping to keep a lid on green-house gas emissions as the world’spopulation increases,” said DavidReay from Edinburgh’s School ofGeoSciences, who led the study.

Figures show that if averagechicken consumption in devel-oped countries fell from the cur-rent level to the Japanese averageby 2020, global emissions frompoultry would fall below currentlevels, despite increased outputfrom the developing world.

This would cut the predictedglobal output of nitrous oxide, akey greenhouse gas, by almost 20per cent, based on current growthrates. Demand for food, particu-larly meat, is expected to increaseover the next few decades as theworld’s population continues togrow.

Agriculture is the biggestsource of nitrous oxide, a powerfulgreenhouse gas that is emitted bysoil and fertilisers. Producing meatproduces more emissions thangrowing crops.

Researchers arrived at theirfindings by examining data forglobal agricultural production ofgreenhouse gases together withconsumption of food in variousregions of the world. IANS

Wise eating helpslower carbonfootprint?

SLEIGH TOLD THEAUSTRALIAN AND NEWZEALAND COLLEGE OFANESTHETISTS CONFERENCETHAT ABOUT ONE IN 1,000PATIENTS RECALL CONVER-SATIONS, SOUNDS FROMTHE OPERATING THEATERWHILE UNDER ANESTHETIC.

Charging upThe Deccan Chargers team knows more than just cricket. Kingfisher, on Monday, organised the

Kingfisher Livewire Entertainment at the Rain Lounge where some of the cricketers played DJs for the night and played to the crowd.

SRINIVAS SETTY

Lavrenti, Melanie, Sri, Chandra Pemmaraju and Chaitanya Chitta Adivi Sesh

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 201220Spotlight

At themovies

Love Lies and Seeta,an urban romantic

comedy about threebest friends who fall inlove with the same girlduring their summer inNew York. A premiereof the film was held atCinemax on Monday.

Cameron White, Kumar Sangakkara, Dale Steyn and another player Cheergirls posing for the lensmen

T-TOWN TWEETIES

@Actor_SiddharthLast ball 6! Game of the tour-nament... pressure cookerdelivers!!! CSK still in it!Should have had a cameraaround my mom for this one;)

@HEROMANOJ1Hey guys :) audio postponedto an other date :) wil let u allknow once confirmed :)) love uall:)

@actressanjjanaaMeet my new charactermeenakshi d solo protagonistof my new film “mahanadhi,shooting in Ankola by d beachside.

@LakshmiManchuSaw #Gabbarsingh first day.Died laughing. Director Harishadapted it beautifully. Congratsto the entire team. Next on list#Ishaqzaade :)

@shrutihaasanOmg I think I just saw Johncryers(Alan from 2 and a halfmen ) indian doppelgänger lol

@shraddhadas43SORRY works when a mistakeis made, but SORRY doesntwork when TRUST is broken, soin life, make mistakes but neverbreak TRUST...

@tashu_02So the 1st schedule of@AnnumInnumEnnum comesto an end.. Time to pack mybags n fly back to Mumbai...

@snehaullalheartOn road... Lonavla baby...going to read a killer scripttoday for my Hindi comeback.first half is ready and I’mgonna try n improvise.

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 2012 21The glamour behind the glitzMagic Screen

Nani is on a roll thesedays. After scoring backto back hits like AlaModalaindi and Pilla

Zamindar last year, he’s acting in SS Rajamouli’s Eega, GauthamMenon’s Eto Vellipoyindhi Manasuand Krishna Vamsi’s next. The lat-est buzz in Kollywood is that hehas signed to play one of the leadroles in a bilingual film to bedirected by Samutharakani. AmalaPaul is going to team up with Naniand Jayam Ravi in this film. Thisuntitled film is expected to go onfloors in June. With three back toback bilingual films to his credit,Nani is slowly emerging as one ofthe most bankable stars in Teluguand Tamil. Meanwhile, we hearthat Amala Paul has opted out of

two projects to be part of thisbilingual film. Earlier this summer,Amala Paul was in talks withRadhamohan and Parasuram toplay lead roles in Gauravam andSaar Vastaru; however, she didn’tsign both these films due to lack ofdates. For now, she’s only part of V V Vinayak, Ram Charan’s upcom-ing film in Telugu.

NANI, AMALA PAUL FOR A BILINGUAL FILM

Shankar’s nextbased on cashfor votes?

Shankar’s penchant for dabblingwith themes like politics andcorruption is well known. In the

past, he has made films likeGentleman, Bharatheeyudu, OkeOkkadu and Shivaji which had oneman taking a stand against the sys-tem to bring a change. His next filmtentatively titled Therdhal starringVikram is reportedly based on elec-tion commission and also cash forvotes scam which rocked the coun-try few years ago. Shankar hasalready begun working on the film’sscript and the film is likely to go onfloors after September. A Bollywoodheroine is likely to be cast in the filmand more details will be announcedsoon. PC Sriram is likely to be thecinematographer and AR Rahmanmight compose the music.

Eega to releaseon May 30SS Rajamouli’s upcoming film

Eega is on track for release onMay 30. For the past few days,

there were rumours in the industrythat the film might be pushed tomid June since Rajamouli’s teamwanted more time for the post pro-duction activities. However, sourcesclose to the film say that Rajamouliis not in a mood to push the film’srelease any further as there areplenty of other big starrers lined upfor release in June and July.Moreover, Eega was originallyplanned for release in April andpushing its release date any furtherwould jeopardise the incrediblebuzz surrounding the film. “Gearingup to get eega censored on 21st..Hoping to get a U certification likeMaryadaramanna . (sic)” S SRajamouli posted on Twitter hint-ing that there won’t be any delay inthe film’s release date.

B-TOWN TWEETIES

@sonamakapoorRT @GreatestQuotes: “Thetragedy of life is not that itends so soon, but that we waitso long to begin it.” — W.M.Lewis

@AnupamPkherOn my way to Singapore forthe launch of my book “TheBest Thing About You is YOU”.The book is in its 8th edition infive months. Jai Ho.:)

@RGVzoominRowdy Rathore cmng frm themaker of Devdas, Saawariyand Guzaarish either sayssmthg about the film or smth-ng about the maker.

@bipsluvurselfHeading to the@IIFAAwards2012 Press Conf.Excited to be performing at theIIFA Awards night on 9th Juneat Singapore.

@FarOutAkhtarGoa. As crowded, hot or overdeveloped you may be...There’s still that magic in theair. Bye for now... Shall returnsoon.

@SrBachchanT 744 — Just reading thatTarini Sachdev the girl childartist in Paa, has perished inNepal plane crash... please Godmay this not be true.

@DuttaLaraSo my Pre-Natal DvD hits themarket tomorrow! :-). Workedhard on it with the Saregamateam! All to be mommies,especially for you!:-)

@shahidkapoorJust caught aamir khans#satyamevjayate... Had missedseeing it as was a lil unwell...Hats off to him for taking upsuch a sensitive show bringingsuch huge issues to light ....

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 2012 22The glamour behind the glitzMagic Screen

Hiten Tejwani

Life outside the small screen

Acting is their pas-sion, but the pro-fession doesn’tguarantee long-

term stability. So a bevy ofactors, including Ronit Roy,Hiten Tejwani andRakshanda Khan, have ven-tured into alternate busi-nesses to have a securefuture.

Hiten, who rose to fameas Karan in Kyunki Saas BhiKabhi Bahu Thi, owns arestaurant named BarcodeO53 and says acting cannotguarantee a lifelong sourceof income.

“My idea of opening arestaurant was important.The whole point is that Icouldn’t have been totallydependent on acting for myincome...even though Iwant to remain in the fieldof entertainment forever,”Hiten said.

“It’s great to have some-thing to fall back on. I don’tcome from a business fami-ly; so I thought of startingsomething so that my kidshave some backing infuture,” he added.

Hiten is not the onlyone! Kushal Punjabi ownsnightclub Ye ‘ole WateringHole in the entertainmentcapital, while Mohit Mallikis the owner of a chain ofrestaurants along with ahealth store.

Pawan Shankar, cur-rently seen as a man who ishaving an extramaritalaffair in “Kyaa Hua TeraVaada, runs a companythat organises lifestyle exhi-bitions across the country.

And the actor admits hisbusiness helps him choosegood work on screen.

Pawan said: “I have mycompany — Fashionista. Istarted it in 2008 and all myfree time goes into buildingthe company. By god’sgrace money has neverbeen an issue. We organiselifestyle and fashion exhibi-tions across the countrywhere designers showcasetheir creativity.

“It is true that actorsdon’t have any sustainabili-ty. I am glad that my busi-ness gives me the leeway tochoose the kind of rolesthat I am comfortabledoing,” he added.

Apart from being anactor, Anuj Saxena, a quali-fied doctor, is jugglingmany roles and responsibil-ities. He is a producer, a

restaurateur and the man-aging director of pharma-ceutical company ElderHealth Care Ltd.

Actor-brothers Ronitand Rohit Roy have theirown businesses. WhileRonit runs Ace Security andProtection that providespersonal security to topBollywood stars like AamirKhan and Shah Rukh Khan,his sibling Rohit haslaunched a film and TVproduction company.

Other actors who havetheir own production hous-es are Chetan Hansraj andSumeet Raghavan.

Karan Kundra, who roseto fame with KitniMohabbat Hai, has estab-lished a call centre inJalandhar, while ShaleenBhanot has GraphicMachinery Company,

which concentrates onexporting machinery allover India.

Sachin Shroff runs abusiness that supplies con-struction steel.

If male actors are hap-pily focussing on their act-ing as well as business,women are not far behind.

Actresses RakshandaKhan and Pooja Ghai havetheir own event manage-ment firms, while RivaBubber has a dog groomingsalon. Rupali Ganguly runsan advertising agency.

Sara Khan, Achint Kaurand Sanjeeda Sheikh havetheir own beauty salons.

Rashmi Desai alongwith husband NandishSandhu are also set tolaunch a production house.

But actor Arjun Bijlanifeels that business cannotbe a backup plan for hispassion, which is acting. Heowns a wine shop inMumbai.

“For me, business is nota backup plan. SachinTendulkar is a cricket play-er and that’s his passion.But he also has a restau-rant... I don’t think it is hisbackup plan,” said theactor seen in Miley JabHum Tum and Left RightLeft.

“Likewise, there aremany people into acting,but side by side they’vestarted their business. Ihave my own business, I’vea wine shop in Andheri andacting is my passion. I wantto grow as an actor,” headded. IANS

Rakshanda Khan

Achint Kaur Kushal Punjabi

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 201223Magic Screen

` 150 sq. cm

For Further DetailsPlease

Contact

Abhinay 9989399972

Nandlal 9951467988

Ravi Chander8106039919

DISPLAYA

DS

RATE

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 201224The glamour behind the glitzMagic Screen

Subscribe

Today!

6 Months

`̀ 199/-

1 Year

` 349/-

Contactus

on :

040 4067 2222

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 201225The glamour behind the glitzMagic Screen

CELEBRATES 26THBIRTHDAY

Robert Pattinson

LIKES TODRINK DIAL

Adam Garcia

LovatojoinsX Factor USA

Robert Pattinson celebrated his 26th birthday atClaridge’s hotel in London on Sunday evening. Heplayed host to friends like Hugh Jackman and a preg-

nant Sienna Miller. It was back to the city for Robert afterhe spent the weekend with Kristen Stewart in the Englishcountryside, where she was busy with press duties forSnow White and the Huntsman. The duo stayed together atthe Bailiffscourt Hotel in West Sussex, England, a spot just15 minutes from Kristen’s work duties at Arundel Castle.The last week has been extra busy for Kristen. She jetted toParis for a round of interviews on behalf of her new movie,which is out on June 1, before moving on to the UK.

Australian actor AdamGarcia often phones

up girls when he isdrunk, as alcohol gives him the

confidence to share his true feel-ings.

The Coyote Ugly star ‘drinkdials’ frequently, but admits call-

ing women when he is tipsyoften lands him in embarrassing

situations.He tells Closer magazine,

“Well, it’s hard to rememberwho, but I drunk dial a lot! I was

seeing this girl recently and usedto call her up saying I missedher. I can’t help it after a few

drinks!”Luckily one person

Garcia hasn’t called whileintoxicated is his former

co-star Lindsay Lohan,who remains a close pal

after they worked on amovie project together.

He adds, “Westarred in

Confessions of aTeenage Drama

Queen together in2004 and we’ve

stayed in touch.She’s a great

girl and when-ever I’m in

L.A., we meetup for cof-

fee.”

The X Factor will be

housing two formerDisney pop princesses at

its judging table in seasontwo! Teen idol Demi Lovato has

officially joined the Fox hit realityseries as the fourth and final judge,

sources confirm to E! News. Lovato is setto join Simon Cowell, L.A. Reid and fellow

newbie judge Britney Spears when the showreturns in September. While Fox isn’t com-menting on Lovato’s hiring, the 19-year-old

singer is expected to make an appearance tomor-row at the network’s upfront presentation in NewYork City. Spears is also expected to appear at the

event where a formal announcement about the duojoining the show will be made

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 201226Chai Time

How to Play KakuroKakuro is a popular game similar to sudoku in some ways. But is alsosuitably different. The key question: “How do you play Kakuro?”, wellhere are the rules of kakuro. The answer: The kakuro grid, unlike insudoku, can be of any size. It has rows and columns, and dark cells likein a crossword. And, just like in a crossword, some of the dark cells willcontain numbers. Some cells will contain two numbers.

However, in a crossword the numbers reference clues. In a kakuro,the numbers are all you get! They denote the total of the digits in therow or column referenced by the number.

Within each collection of cells - called a run - any of the numbers 1to 9 may be used but, like sudoku, each number may only be used once.

Let’s have an example to explain this concept more clearly:In the image above, which shows a section of a kakuro puzzle, you

will see the numbers ‘26’ and ‘14’ in the top row. Look at the 14. Thismeans that the total of the three cells underneath must sum to 14.Therefore 9, 4, 1 could be the answer, or perhaps 7, 4, 3 and so on...

So, how do you work out the actual combination? Well, this is donethrough elimination and cross-referencing. For instance, as you work outthe answers for other kakuro clues, this will naturally limit the valid com-binations, and hence the answer for this particular run.

Note the second cell in row two - it contains two numbers, 30 and11. The 30 refers to the vertical run underneath the number 30 and the11 refers to the two cells to the right, horizontally, of the number 11.

KAKUROACROSS1 Eat in style5 Petting-zoo animal11 Major network14 Frankenstein's flunky15 Parent or scared horse16 "7 Faces of Doctor ___"17 Clock radio feature19 "What was ___ think?"20 Part of MIA21 Member of a wedding

party23 Was nourished24 Flashy trinket26 Greet by hand27 "In 25 words or ___ ..."29 Years and years and

years32 About which the earth

turns33 Deadly snake36 Course activity38 "I hate to ___ and run"39 "Beddy-bye"42 Top gun44 Apartment listing datum45 Zee preceder46 Painted metalware48 Poem of everyday life50 After-bath powder54 Put on board55 Stitched up58 Road surface, often59 South-of-the-border

salamander63 Heading on Santa's list65 Wine glass part66 It's needed to look good

in the morning68 Four qts.69 Prayer70 Pt. of MIT71 Tarzan portrayer Ron72 Cover,as with concrete73 Swings for the fences

DOWN1 Gloomy2 Put a match to

3 Lasso parts4 Winged god of love5 Place of action6 Word with "little" or

"major"7 Chum8 Omani or Yemeni9 Parrot's beak part10 Octopod's octet11 Culminations12 Former name of Jakarta13 Happening first18 Zag' scounterpart22 Airline Howard Hughes

once controlled25 Sultry summer stretches28 Witnessed30 "... see hide ___ hair

of"31 1977 Triple Crown

champion Seattle ___

34 Shark's milieu35 "Frasier" actress Gilpin37 Wray of "King Kong"39 Once in a blue moon40 Red Sox legendWilliams41 Was introduced to42 As a whole43 Type of TV cable47 Wriggler inthe water49 Slow musi-cal passages51 Goddess ofwisdom52 Most current53 Vaults in

WestministerAbbey

56 "TheShootist"star

57 Greek letters60 Woodwind61 Fork-tailed shore bird62 Of the congregation64 Fast-talking67 NATO founding member

SCRI

BBLI

NG P

AD

SUDOKU

I’ve looked onmany womenwith lust. I’ve

committedadultery in my

heart manytimes.

God knows I willdo this and

forgives me.

THOUGHT OFTHE DAY

Take a shot at the brain game while sipping your cuppa

QUICK CROSSWORD

PREVIOUS PUZZLE ANSWER

– Jimmy Carter

27Chai TimeC

OM

ICS

Ston

e so

up

ARIESEmployees need to concentrate andexecute their work to gain the good‑will of the superiors. Businessmenmight experience ups and downs.Politicians will prosper. Avoid journeys.

CANCER

LIBRABusinessmen will see improvement inmargins; especially, the individualbusinessmen will flourish well. Womenwill keep the family away from ten‑sions which may spoil the atmosphere.

CAPRICORNA patient approach is required whiledealing with debt. Chances of litiga‑tions over property likely. Politicianswill get support and favour from lead‑ership. Lawyers will make good name.

TAURUSThere will be hurdles and delays infinancial transactions. But don't beupset for that and keep working inyour own way so that you will comeout of the problems soon.

LEOMost of your fresh efforts will ensuresuccess to you but minor hurdles arealso not ruled out. Govternment con‑tractors and partnership business willexperience good opportunities.

SCORPIOOpportunity for growth is seen. Donʼtworry about minor problems.Businessmen will see a good growth Ifthere are any problems with the staffresolve the same amicably.

AQUARIUSSome problems will be faced but youwill not be affected. Slow and steadypolicy will ensure you success.Employees must maintain cordial rela‑tionship with superiors.

GEMINIBusinessmen will see increased profits.Employees will see mixed results.Though there will be a comfortable sit‑uation at workplace, non co‑operationfrom the colleagues might upset you.

VIRGOWith your hardwork, you will com‑plete a lot of good work. Friends willextend their support. Your efforts willyield the desired results. Businessmenwill handle tough competition well.

SAGITTARIUSPoliticians will gain good name andwin the confidence of leadership. Youwill easily manage increasing expenses.Employees will earn good name fromtheir superiors.

PISCESBe cautious in your work. Plan well inadvance. Family atmosphere willremain in a happy state due to the intelligent stand taken by thewomen.

For B

ette

r or f

or W

orse

Ink

pen

The Sun ‑ Youʼrebright and cheerfuland this happy dispo‑sition wins you manyfriends. People evencome to you foradvice because youseem so practical.

Three of Cups ‑Celebration time!Bring out the bubblyand celebrate yoursuccess. Itʼs impor‑tant to do so toattract more positiveenergy into your life.

Eight of Swords ‑You feel restless andon the edge. Youhavenʼt been sleep‑ing well and itʼsshowing on yourhealth. Take time offand rest well.

CANCER LEO VIRGO

The Chariot ‑ Travelis on the cards. Thiswill be an importantjourney when youmeet interestingpeople who make animpact on yourfuture life course.

Nine of swords ‑Nightmares, restlesssleep and anxiety aretaking a toll on yourhealth. Take time offand get away for afew days. Rejuvenateand refresh.

Nine of Wands ‑Youʼre reaching theend of a prestigiousproject and youʼveput in a lot of hardwork. Itʼs showingand the bosses areextremely happy.

LIBRA SCORPIO SAGITTARIUS

Seven of Wands ‑Youʼre feeling tiredand need to rest. Usesome time by your‑self to look back,review your decisionsand plan ahead forthe weeks to come.

Knight of Wands ‑You have the youth‑ful energy and rawenthusiasm to tryout the new. This isa lucky phase. Makethe most of it anduse your positivity.

Temperance ‑ Bepatient about yourwork situation.Things will improve.Youʼre getting anx‑ious about the sacri‑fices youʼve made inorder to get here.

CAPRICORN AQUARIUS PISCES

SOLUTIONS

Sudu

ko

Scrabble

Num

ber g

ame

Boggle

LUTE CELLO BANJO GUITAR VIOLIN

Plans might nor progress as per yourexpectations. Reduce anger and adjustwith all in a flexible manner.Employees need to work without mak‑ing the superiors feel dissatisfied.

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 2012Your tomorrow today̶Star Power and Tarot

Vol: 1, No. 303 RNI No: APENG/2011/39337 Published for the proprietors, Scribble Media and Entertainment Pvt Ltd, by V Harshavardhan Reddy, at #1246, Level 3, Jubilee Casa, Road No. 62, Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad–500033 and printed by himat Jagati Publications Ltd, Plot No D-75&E-52, APIE Industrial Estate, Balanagar, Ranga Reddy Dist, Hyderabad–500037, Editor: Dean Williams – Responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act

All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission of the publisher is prohibited. For feedback, please write to: feedback@postnoon.com and for subscription, please call 040-40672222, Fax: 040-40672211

SUMAA TEKURtarotreadhyd@gmail.com

THIRUVAIKUMARthiruvaikumar@yahoo.co.in

040-27177230 / 9177596118As per Hindu panchang TAROT READ FOR 16-5-2012

Knight of Wands ‑Youʼre feeling youth‑ful, adventurous andready to take on theworld with your newand creative ideas.Romance is in the air.An old flame returns.

The World ‑ Theworld is at your feetand all your plansare working perfect‑ly. If there are anyminor glitches, youhave it in you tomanage them.

Four of Pentacles ‑The financial stabili‑ty is making it seemworth it despite thelack of challenge inyour current position.Youʼll stick ondespite the boredom.

ARIES TAURUS GEMINI

STAR POWER FOR 16-5-2012

Fred

Bas

set

England’s credibility is onthe line as they take onWe st Indies in the first Te -st at Lord’s on Thursday.

The heavy defeats in theMiddle East and the Sub-Cont -inent over the last few monthshave raised a lot of questions overwhether England can sustaintheir No 1 ranking in the long run.

They managed to hold on to itdespite South Africa’s charge towrest it off them. The seriesagainst the West Indies has addedsignificance, as South Africa areset to tour England in the secondhalf of the summer.

England will not wish for astraight fight for the top ranking.They will be hoping that they canovercome the resurgent WestIndies and hold on to the crown.

They have a good chance too.The first half of the summer will

certainly help England. Theusual rain and clouds may wellspell heavy weather for the inex-perienced West Indians.

The seaming conditions mayas well help the West Indian fastmen. But England are the betterbatting side and their players are

well equipped to counter the con-ditions.

The series will also be a realitycheck for the West Indies. Takeaw ay Shivnaraine Chande rpaul’scontributions and the batting ispathetic to say the least; DarrenBr a vo has promise but needs tost ay longer and sc ore bigger. Mar -

lon Samuels has been indifferent

on his comeback and will need toshow consistency to prove that hefits in.

The repeated omission ofRamnaresh Sarwan seems mysti-fying. He is the victim of the so-called new culture of the WestIndies team. All this talk of cultureis utter rubbish. The West Indiesalways played their best cricketwhen they were unconventionaland erratic. One couldn’t get aBrian Lara to toe the line or forthat matter a Desmond Haynes ora Gordon Greenidge.

The West Indies build theirreputation on aggressive cricket.They had the geniuses who wouldmake zero on one day and smash200 on another. This sedateapproach will make them at bestgood opponents but nothingmore.

The saving grace for the WestIndies are the bowlers. KemarRoach, Fidel Edwards and RaviRampaul are fine bowlers andgetting better by the day.

England will feel good thatskipper Andrew Strauss has gotamong the runs for his countyMiddlesex. Strauss should be left

alone by the critics, as he is stillone of England’s best openingbatsmen. Kevin Pietersen hasfound his golden touch onceagain. He was in prime form inthe IPL and this has continued inthe county matches.

The big question mark will beIan Bell’s form. But Bell has a verygood technique and he will returnto top gear sooner than later.

England will bank on thebowlers on conditions which aretailor-made for them. JamesAnderson is deadly on Englishwickets and he may well be thekey to England’s resurgence.

The focus will once again fallon the two captains. Darren Sam -my is a useful cricketer and anenthusiastic and positive captain.But he will need to raise his gameto justify his presence in the side.

Srauss has been much malig -ned for nothing. The good thing isthat Strauss is a fighter to the core.His redemption could well be inthis series.

If Strauss clicks, then thesunny days of English cricket maywell be back in the gloom of earlysummer.

Twelfth ManBabu Kalyanpur

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 201228The games people playPlaying Field

CAN ENGLAND RETAINTHEIR CROWN?

world number one NicolDavid will have a surpris-ing first round opponent

when she begins her campaign towin back the British Open titlehere on Tuesday.

The legendary Malaysian willtake on Maria Toor Pakay whobecame the first Pakistan-bornwoman ever to reach a BritishOpen main draw after upsettingthe seedings in the qualifyingcompetition.

The 21-year-old left-handerfrom Peshawar overcame EmilyWhitlock, the European juniorchampion, by 11-5, 4-11, 8-11, 11-6, 11-7 in 46 minutes which endedin the English player’s first defeatin any competition since January.It followed another lengthy Pakaytussle on Sunday when she alsowent the full distance, on thatoccasion with Lucie Fialova of theCzech republic, before scrapingpast 11-6, 6-11, 8-11, 11-3, 11-4.

Pakay, who was named as theyoung player of the year on thewomen’s tour in 2007 and receivedthe Salaam Pakistan Award fromthe President Pervez Musharraf inthe same year, will now play thebiggest match of her life in the O2arena, the world’s most popularentertainment venue. Carla Khan,another Pakistan international,also played in the British Openmain draw, but unlike Pakay, wasborn in England and earlier repre-sented England. The grand-daughter of the legendary AzamKhan, four times British Openchampion, Khan changed loyal-ties to Pakistan in 1999.

Earlier three of the Egyptianfront-runners, Amr Shabana, thefour-times world champion,Ramy Ashour, another formerworld champion, and MohamedEl Shorbagy, the former worldjunior champion, all camethrough after hard first round tus-sles in the men’s event. Shabana,who attributes his attitude anddesire to delay retirement to histhree- and four-year-old daugh-ters, fought to beat Tarek Momen11-7, 7-11, 6-11, 11-3, 11-6.

A surpriseawaits bigshot Nicol

ENGLAND WILL NOT WISHFOR A STRAIGHT FIGHT FORTHE TOP RANKING. THEYWILL BE HOPING THAT THEYCAN OVERCOME THE RESUR-GENT WEST INDIES ANDHOLD ON TO THE CROWN.

KABUL: “Welcome to the mostextreme golf in the world,” saysthe European Union ambassadorto Afghanistan, as half-a-dozenheavily armed bodyguards fanout around him and scan theKabul Golf Club course.

But Vygaudas Usackas is nottalking about security threats fac-ing golfers in a war zone — he’stalking about the course.

It is one big hazard, withunfair fairways of rock and this-tles, sand-and-oil “greens” andthe chance of falling into a ditch

making even the most wicked oftraditional sand traps and waterhazards seem benign.

But in a country where gunsfar outnumber golf clubs and di -p lomats live in compounds setde ep behind blast walls and razorwire, Usackas revels in the chanceto “get out and get some fresh air”.

The air at Afghanistan’s onlygolf course — a half-hour driveout of Kabul — is certainly easi-er to breathe than the dust andpollution of the chaotic capital,but golfers accustomed to the

eye-soothing sight of immacu-late lawns would be in for ashock.

And they can leave the fancytwo-tone spiked shoes behind,be ing well-advised to don armystyle boots to cope with the ter-rain. As for clubs, forget about thestate-of-the-art Titanium driverthat cost a few hundred dollarsand choose, like anybody else,from a dusty collection of bagscontaining ancient woods andirons in the spartan, single-room“clubhouse”.

Most extreme golf in the world

Chris Gayle(RCB) 578runs

MorneMorkel (DD)21 wickets

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 201229

It was a very simpleequation. We neededfour to tie and five towin. So definitelyboundary was theoption, and I myselfwell.

Dwayne BravoChennai Super Kings

METRE 6S 600 44ChrisGayle(RCB) 109*HIGHEST

SCOREBESTBOWLER 4-134S1614 70Ajinkya

Rahane(RR)

A Chandila(RR)

Rohit Sharma(MI)

Ta b l e - t o p p e r s ,Delhi Daredevilshad a miserableouting when theyplayed defending

champions, Chennai SuperKings on Saturday. Takingfirst strike, DD could not getbeyond 114, a target whichthe Kings reached comfort-ably in just 15.2 overs.

Looking at their perfor-mance in this season’s IPL,the Daredevils’ show againstCSK was totally unexpected.Their dismal batting displayleft one and all baffled. Theirbowlers could not be blamedas defending such a smalltotal was always going to bean uphill task.

DD are set to clash withthe Kings from Punjab todayon their home turf. WhileDelhi would look to regaintheir lost form, Punjab, fresh

from their victory against theDeccan Chargers, will haveto win the match against theDaredevils to keep theirplay-offs’ hopes alive. Thisvictory has tightened thepoints table making it toughto assume which teamswould make it to the nextround.

Stand-in skipper, DavidHussey, in the absence ofcaptain Adam Gilchrist, hasled from the front. He hasbeen the perfect leader,encouraging his players allthe way and contributing tothe team’s performance inthe best possible manner.

He has been supportedwell by his team-mates;Mandeep Singh, AzharMahmood, Gurkeerat Singhand Shaun Marsh have risenon many occasions. While itcan be safely assumed thatthe Daredevils would qualifyfor the play-offs no matterwhat the outcome of thismatch would be, the Kingswould hope to clinch victoryand improve their chances tomake it to the next round.

Rayadu,Patel finedfor spatMumbai Indians’ Ambati

Rayudu and RoyalChallengers Bangalore’s HarshalPatel have been fined for breach-ing the Code of Coduct after anugly spat occurred between thetwo during an Indian PremierLeague match. While Rayudu wasfined 100 per cent of his matchfee, Patel has been reprimandedand fined 25 per cent of his earn-ing for their showdown after theend of the game at the MChinnaswamy Stadium yesterday.Rayudu has been fined for usingobscene and abusive languagetowards Patel - a Level 2 offenceunder Article 2.2.8 of IPL Code ofConduct. Patel, meanwhile, hasbeen reprimanded and fined forbringing the game into disreputeby his aggressive reaction.

G Aparna Sai feedback@postnoon.com

A devil of a job for Kings

DD VS KXIPAT 8 PM ON SET MAX

ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE VS MUMBAI INDIANS

RC Bangalore innings (20 overs)CH Gayle b Patel 6TM Dilshan b Singh 47V Kohli* run out (Gibbs) 3Tiwary hit wicket b Harbhajan Singh 21AB de Villiers† c Malinga b Pollard 14MA Agarwal not out 64Vinay Kumar run out (Smith/†Karthik) 1Z Khan not out 1Extras (lb 2, w 9, nb 3) 14Total (6 wickets; 20 overs) 171Bowling O M R W EconMM Patel 4 0 54 1 13.50RP Singh 4 0 23 1 5.75SL Malinga 4 0 29 0 7.25Harbhajan 3 0 33 1 11.00KA Pollard 3 0 20 1 6.66DR Smith 2 0 10 0 5.00

Mumbai Indians innings (target: 172 runs from 20 overs)

Gibbsrun out (Appanna/Tiwary) 2SR Tendulkar c Kohli b Khan 0RG Sharma c & b Vinay Kumar 5KD Karthik† c Patel b Muralitharan 16AT Rayudu not out 81DR Smith c Dilshan b Patel 6KA Pollard not out 52Extras (lb 4, w 7) 11Total (5 wickets; 19.4 overs) 173Bowling O M R W EconZ Khan 4 0 34 1 8.50R Vinay Kumar 4 0 36 1 9.00HV Patel 4 0 25 1 6.25Muralitharan 4 0 16 1 4.00KP Appanna 1 0 19 0 19.00CH Gayle 2.4 0 39 0 14.62

Mumbai Indians won by 5 wickets

KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS VS CHENNAI SUPER KINGS

Kolkata Knight Riders innings (20 overs)G Gambhir* b Jakati 62McCullum† run out (Anirudha/†Dhoni) 37JH Kallis c Ashwin b Jakati 4MK Tiwary c Bravo b Jadeja 12YK Pathan c Bravo b Ashwin 11DB Das not out 19LR Shukla c Raina b Hilfenhaus 9R Bhatia not out 1Extras (lb 2, w 1) 3Total (6 wickets; 20 overs) 158Bowling O M R W EconSB Jakati 4 0 26 2 6.50BW Hilfenhaus3 0 26 1 8.66R Ashwin 4 0 26 1 6.50SK Raina 2 0 17 0 8.50RA Jadeja 4 0 39 1 9.75DJ Bravo 3 0 22 0 7.33

Chennai Super Kings innings (target: 159 runs from 20 overs)

MEK Hussey c Bhatia b Narine 56M Vijay b Narine 36SK Raina run out (Bhatia) 8F du Plessis c Tiwary b Bhatia 13MS Dhoni*† b Bhatia 28DJ Bravo not out 11RA Jadeja not out 3Extras (lb 4, w 1) 5Total (5 wickets; 20 overs) 160Bowling O M R W EconM de Lange 3 0 37 0 12.33L Balaji 4 0 33 0 8.25SP Narine 4 0 14 2 3.50JH Kallis 3 0 25 0 8.33R Bhatia 4 0 33 2 8.25YK Pathan 2 0 14 0 7.00

Chennai Super Kings won by 5 wickets

SCORECARD

P W L N/T PT NRRDD 13 9 4 0 18 +0.729MI 14 9 5 0 18 -0.056K KR 14 8 5 1 17 +0.390CSK 15 8 6 1 17 +0.214RCB 14 7 6 1 15 -0.072RR 14 7 7 0 14 +0.335KXIP 13 7 6 0 14 -0.270 PW 15 4 11 0 8 -0.477DC 14 2 11 1 5 -0.680P-played; W-win; L-lost; N/T-noresult/tie;NRR-net run rate; PT-points

It might be a mere coincidencebut it seems that the topteams’ standing on the points

table matches the telephonecode of cities from where theyhail and that too in order.

Delhi Daredevil are top andDelhi’s phone code is 01. MumbaiIndians are second and their tele-

phone code is 02; Kolkata KnightRiders are third and Kolkata’scode is 03; and Chennai SuperKings are fourth and Chennaicode is 04. Also, the four cities aremetros and all the four zones arerepresented. Delhi representsnorth, Mumbai west, Kolkata eastand Chennai South. Strange, eh?

A very strange coincidence

Asting operation by a TVnews channel has caughta few domestic crick-

eters claiming that IPL fran-chises pay them more moneythan they are entitled to as perthe BCCI rules, to retain or lurethem from other teams.Shalabh Srivastava, a mediumpacer from Uttar Pradesh whois contracted with Kings XIPunjab, is shown alleging thatmost teams pay players theextra money in black. However,Shalabh Srivastava has deniedthe spot-fixing charge and saidthat the audio clip a TV chan-nel is playing is doctored andalso threatened to sue thechannel. “I fail to understandwhatever is being said aboutspot-fixing,” he said.

Shalabh tosue channel

71 DAYS TO GOTUESDAY, MAY 15, 2012 30

DALLAS, USA: US First LadyMichelle Obama is teaming upwith the US OlympicCommittee to introduce morethan 1.7 million children to anarray of sports as part of her“Let’s Move!” youth fitnesscampaign.

Obama, who will lead theUS delegation to the LondonOlympics in July, was flanked bydozens of Olympians andOlympic hopefuls as she spokefor about 10 minutes at the

USOC’s pre-London OlympicSummit on Monday. She andUSOC chief executive ScottBlackmun announced an initia-tive in which the USOC andseveral of the national govern-ing bodies under its umbrellawill introduce children acrossthe country to to their sports.

“I am beyond proud to beleading the US delegation tothe opening ceremonies inLondon this summer,” Obamasaid. “And I want you to knowthat I’ll be doing so both as aFirst Lady honored to be repre-senting my country and as alifelong Olympic fan.”

Obama recalled being“awed and inspired” byOlympic competitors that shewatched the Games on televi-sion as a youngster. But it was12-time Olympic swimmingmedallist Natalie Coughlin whowas briefly tongue-tied as sheintroduced the First Lady.

LONDON: London haspledged to host the green-

est Olympic Games ever staged,but it could take years before thepromises start to flower.

The pledge was made sevenyears ago by then-prime ministerTony Blair when London won theright to host the 2012 Olympics.

Bigger, more beautiful, clean-er: all Olympic Games make thesame promises. But whatbecomes of the concrete infras-tructure, the miles of new roadsand the tonnes of waste?

“It’s a slight oxymoron, theidea of the Olympic Games beingsustainable,” said John Sauven,the executive director of the UKbranch of environmental organi-sation Greenpeace.

“When you put on any eventthat lasts a weekend or a fort-night, it’s very hard to make itsustainable in nature, because it’sa very short-term event.

“You’re going to have an awfullot of people flying in for a veryshort period of time, consuminga huge amount of resources, andflying out again.”

However, the London Games

do not measure up badly, heexplained, because of the trans-formation they have broughtabout in Stratford, east London,and the legacy they will leaveonce the Olympic flame is extin-

guished on August 12.“This was a fairly polluted

industrial site,” Sauven said ofwhat is now the Olympic Park.

“It has been restored, obvi-ously a massive regeneration pro-gramme has been going on and itwill be integrated into the fabricof the city, so it’s not like the 2004Athens Olympics where a lot ofthe facilities are just abandonedruins now.”

David Stubbs, the head of

sustainability at the LondonGames organisers LOCOG, said:“From the beginning, sustain-ability was part of the project.”

Some two million tonnes ofpolluted soil has been cleaned upand re-used on the site and rain-water is stored and re-used.

Construction materials withlow carbon content were givenpriority in building the stadia onthe Olympic Park, with the aim ofreducing carbon dioxide mis-sions by half compared with nor-mal construction standards.

While they acknowledge theeffort, Greenpeace and Friends ofthe Earth regret “missed opportu-nities” such as the scrapping of awind turbine project on the site.

The decision made the per-centage of renewable energyused on the park drop from theoriginal target of 20 percent to 12percent.

AFP

Green Games an oxymoron

Two-time Olympic fencing champion Laura Flessel will be France’sflag-bearer at this summer’s Olympic Games in London.

GRAND HONOUROlympic fan Michellesays, ‘Let’s move!’

ZURICH: Double Olympic sprintchampion Usain Bolt will race inthe Zurich leg of the DiamondLeague on August 30, organisersannounced on Monday.

Bolt, also the world recordholder over the 100 and 200m,kicked off his season on homesoil last week, winning theJamaica InternationalInvitational in a world-leading9.82 seconds.

He is scheduled to run the100m in Ostrava, Czech Republic,on May 25, and will also race the100m at the Diamond Leaguemeetings in Rome on May 31 andOslo on June 7.

His final race before the July27-August 12 London OlympicGames will be over 200m at theMonaco Diamond League meet-ing on July 20.

“Zurich is often called theone-day Olympics and I expectthis year to be a very specialmeeting 18 days after the LondonGames,” said Bolt.

Bolt will race inZurich leg of theDiamond league

BIGGER, MORE BEAUTIFUL,CLEANER: ALL OLYMPICGAMES MAKE THE SAMEPROMISES. BUT WHATBECOMES OF THE CONCRETEINFRASTRUCTURE, THE MILESOF NEW ROADS AND THETONNES OF WASTE?

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 201231The games people playPlaying FieldSPORT SNIPPETS

Ventoso wins Giro 9th stageSpain’s Francisco Ventoso(Movistar) claimed victory in

the ninth stage of the Giro d’Italia in a sprintfinish on Monday, with Canada’s RyderHesjedal (Garmin) holding onto the leader’spink jersey. British world champion MarkCavendish (Sky) was unable to take part inthe sprint after being involved in a crash onthe last bend in which Italy’s Filippo Pozzatocollided with the Australian Matt Goss(GreenEdge) with 400 metres remaining.

Cycling

Evan help Philadelphia winEvan Turner scored the go-ahead layup and drained a

couple of key free throws down the stretchas Philadelphia held on for a 82-81 win overBoston to even their Eastern Conferenceplayoff series at 1-1. Turner drove to the basket, got knockeddown but still made the layup as he wasfalling under the basket to give the upstartSixers a 76-75 lead 40 seconds left in thefourth.

NBA

All Blacks’ Kahui injuredAll Blacks winger RichardKahui will miss next month’s

three-Test series against Ireland with ashoulder injury, his Super 15 team theWaikato Chiefs said Tuesday. Kahui’s absence throws a potential lifelineto Zac Guildford or Hosea Gear, both ofwhom were omitted from New Zealand’s35-man training squad for the seriesnamed on Monday. The 27-year-old dislocated his shoulder inthe Chiefs’ loss to the Queensland Reds onSunday.

Rugby

“But we’ll see how Ifeel over the nextfew days. I still havea couple of days tosee how I feel andtake it from there

Roger Federer aboutplaying Rome

Masters

ASKNã=is the prize money of the Greenbrier Classicthat Tiger Woods will play for the first timeas a tune up for the British Open. The July5-8 event will be staged on the Old WhiteTPC course. The decision marks the third

unusual event on Woods’ schedule in ninemonths.

RED HILLS IN SEMIFINAL

Red HillsdefeatedGymkhanaRangers 1-0on Monday toenter thesemifinal ofthe PeterThangarajMemorialFootballTournament.Red Hills tookthe lead inthe very firstminute of thematchthroughZubair, whoconverted apass fromSyed Nadeem.This is thequickest goalof thetournament.

McLaren’s under-fuelling fiascomay have ruinedL e w i s

Hamilton’s Spanish GrandPrix but it appears to havestrengthened his positionwithin the team, reports theGuardian.

The McLaren team prin-cipal, Martin Whitmarsh,has been impressed by theway Hamilton responded tothe devastating punishmentof being flung from poleposition to the back of thegrid after running out of fuelduring Saturday’s qualifying

session; cars must be able togive a sample of one litre.

Hamilton, whose con-tract is up for renewal at theend of the season, then

drove heroically to finisheighth, using only a two-stop strategy, and was ashigh as fourth at one stage.

Whitmarsh said of

Hamilton: “I have to say hehad some greatness I hadnot seen before. By the endof our chat he was consolingme. To say I was disappoint-ed is a modest expression ofwhat I felt.

“He was saying we winand lose as a team. He was agreat, great driver this week-end. To be a great driver likeFangio you need greatnessin handling setbacks, chal-lenges off the track, and hehas excelled in that. Myaffection and admiration forLewis have been enhancedby events this weekend.”

Cool Hami’s graceimpresses Whitmarsh

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 201232The games people playPlaying Field

Manchester City’s Argentinian forward Sergio Aguero (2R) and Manchester City’s Romanian goalkeeper Costel Pantilimon hold thetrophy on an open topped bus as they celebrate becoming English Premier League champions in a parade in Manchester City.

City apologise for ‘RIP Fergie’ placardScholes extendsUtd tenure

Paul Scholes has signeda one-year contract

extension withManchester United, withSir Alex Ferguson hintingthat Ryan Giggs may fol-low the midfielder intoret irement at the end ofnext season, reported theGuardian.

The United managertold MUTV: “It has beendone. [Scholes] is staying.Obviously next season willdefinitely be Ryan Giggs’and Paul Scholes’ last sea-son.”

However, Fergusonspoke with hope that hewas not sure about Ryanbecause he defies age.“But for Paul it will prob-ably be his last year.”

Sergio: This isjust the start

Sergio Agüero believesManchester City’s first

title since 1968 is the startof “big things” for theclub. He has also urgedMario Balotelli, who cre-ated the last-gasp, cham-pionship-clinching winneragainst Queens ParkRangers on Sunday, andEdin Dzeko, the scorer ofthe equaliser, to stay atCity. “It’s all about Citynow, not United,” said theArgentine. “What we’vedone there is manage topull it out of the fire andwin it at the very lastminute and hopefully it’sthe start of big things.”

THE HAGUE: Bert van Marwijkmay have led the Netherlands tothe 2010 World Cup final but hismethods were not to the taste ofthe man who embodies the coun-try’s lauded football culture.

“Spain, a replica of Barcelona,are the best advert for football,”wrote Johan Cruyff of Holland’sopponents on the eve of theWorld Cup final in Johannesburg.

“Who am I supporting? I amDutch but I support the footballthat Spain are playing.”

Cruyff would congratulatevan Marwijk for his achievementsafter Spain prevailed in the finalbut the damage had already beeninflicted: the team had comeclose to glory — but it had notbeen done the Dutch way.

In the days that followed the

final, the Netherlands foundthemselves pilloried for theaggressive way they had attempt-ed to shake the Spanish out oftheir stride.

Their approach was typifiedby a chest-high foul on XabiAlonso by Nigel de Jong thatescaped punishment by refereeHoward Webb but which hascome to resonate as an exampleof the steely pragmatism injectedinto the team by their coach.

The Netherlands have beco -me a byword for underachieve-ment in international football —three World Cup final defeats, 24years since their last major tro-phy — and van Marwijk appearsdetermined to end their reputa-tion for style over substance.

“From day one, van Marwijk

has said, ‘I don’t want that again.I want our team to win even on abad day,’” said his biographer,Edwin Schoon, in an interviewwith Radio NetherlandsWorldwide.

“So he put winning beforeattractive play, and he’s ham-mered it home to his players, stepby step, and incorporated it in histactics by shoring up thedefence.”

The Dutch team thatappeared at the World Cup mayhave been the antithesis of theside that capitivated the worldwith Total Football at the 1974tournament. But two years onfrom South Africa, they are a farmore crowd-pleasing prospect.

They scored more goals inqualifying for Euro 2012 (37) than

any other side, and in WesleySneijder, Arjen Robben, Rafaelvan der Vaart, Robin van Persieand Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, possesssome of the most talented for-wards in the game.

For all his pragmatism as acoach, van Marwijk was a daringwinger in his playing days,amassing 393 appearances in theDutch Eredivisie with four differ-ent clubs.

When silky Dutch gets steely

‘We invest in youth, not on proven goods’MANCHESTER,ENGLAND: Manchester Unitedmanager Sir Alex Ferguson said onMonday he wasn’t concerned byrivals and newly-crowned PremierLeague champions ManchesterCity’s ability to out bid them in thetransfer market. However, Fergusonsaid that he was not going to beforced into a change of transferpolicy because of losing out totheir city rivals and would stick toinvesting in young talent whileAbu Dhabi-owned City spent hugeamounts on established players.“We know City are going to spendfortunes, pay stupid money andsilly salaries. We know that hap-

pens. We can’t do anything aboutthat,” the 70-year-old told MUTVat the United player of the yeardinner. “We are not like otherclubs who can spend fortunes onproven goods.”

MANCHESTER, UNITEDKINGDOM: Carlos Tevez landedhimself in fresh controversy onMonday when he was picturedwaving a mocked-up tombstonefor Sir Alex Ferguson duringManchester City’s Premier Leaguetitle celebrations.

The 28-year-old Argentinastriker held up a banner designedto look like a gravestone and bear-ing the words ‘RIP Fergie’ as Citycelebrated their title triumph overManchester United during anopen-top bus parade. ManchesterCity later released a statementapologising to Ferg uson and criti-cised Tevez while the player - whoit is believed took the banner froma fan - also said he “didn`t meanany disrespect”. “The creation ofthe tasteless material is in itself

reprehensible and in acceptingand brandishing it, Carlos hasmade a significant error of judge-ment,” said a City spokeswoman.“The club wishes to express its sin-cerest apologies to Sir AlexFerguson and Manchester UnitedFootball Club for any offence ordistress caused.”

Tevez for his part said he hadjust got carried away. “I certainlydidn’t mean any disrespect to SirAlex Ferguson, who I admire as aman and a manager,” he said.There was speculation it couldhave been a reference to a com-ment made by Ferguson in 2009when he was asked whether Uni -ted would ever be underdogs totheir city rivals.

“Not in my lifetime,” theUnited manager had said then.